The List
by buffett-head
Summary: She started the list the second time he offered to fix a couple small things at the Independence Inn. She didn’t write anything down, but in the back of her mind she started keeping track of the things he had done for her—that he had done for the both of
1. Lorelai

**Author's Note: **This story has been in the works for quite a while, ever since the sixth season fell into that downward spiral that it can't recover from. But that's another time and another place. So the original spark came from the mess that was written, and how it could have been resolved. But in order to tell that story I have to tell this story to set the background. I've got a very large, very epic storyline in my head, so things might get a little complicated because I won't always be able give the entire story in one sitting. It's crucial to pick up on details, so things might make more sense if you read the chapters a second time. By the way, still looking for a beta that could help me with things like clarity and continuity and overall story management duties. Plus you would get a sneak-peek at new chapters—just thought I'd throw in a little incentive.

**The setting for the story is:** the development of the relationship between Luke and Lorelai, and Rory by extension, through the eyes of those close to them. Each chapter is in one or more character's POV of event(s). The character that the event is seen through will be the chapter name. So, chapter one is Lorelai's POV.

**Etc… Etc… **I've got several chapters already written, but that being said this story leaves itself wildly open to suggestions and reader input. If there is an idea burning in your mind then by all means, leave a note in a review. Reviews are appreciated but not demanded. _Italics_ are thoughts or emphasis, **Bold **is emphasis, the quotes in the chapters set the mood…

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Gilmore Girls or the characters therein. I did, however, develop this fanfiction. All rights reserved. Title XXVII, sec. 2 par. A. C/O the law offices of Dewey, Cheatem, and Howe.

"**And I've got presents to send you,**

**I've even got money to lend you.**

**But honey I can never ever pretend, **

**Your not there on my mind."**

'**Presents to send you,' Jimmy Buffett**

Lorelai

She started the list the second time he offered to fix a couple small things at the Independence Inn. She didn't write anything down, but in the back of her mind she started keeping track of the things he had done for her—that he had done for the both of them. At that point in time he was still 'Duke' and she came to the diner alone because she hadn't told him about Rory. It wasn't that she was afraid of what he would think; she just didn't know how he would respond to the fact that she had a kid. She'd only known him for about three weeks, and even then she only talked to him while she was waiting for her cup of coffee or eating a quick lunch at the counter before going back to the inn. If she had to use a single word to describe it would have been 'disgruntled.' Which made the fact that he ran a diner all the more mysterious. It was a job that required social contact and people skills; patience and a reasonably cool head. And while he did make the best coffee and a damn fine burger, she didn't know why he would choose to have a job that required so much more human interaction than he seemed to want. So the offer to help out at the inn became the fourth thing on her mental list, right behind his coffee, his food, and that shy smile she'd only seen once.

She finished her lunch and decided that if he was offering then she was going to accept. It was a nice gesture and she would save some money, plus she didn't mind having a handsome man to order around for a couple hours. _Dirty._ When she got to the register she paid for her meal and cleared her throat after Luke had closed the till. She smiled at him and used her 'in charge' voice. "So, Duke, why don't you come by the inn at three and I'll hand you your list of chores."

Luke looked up from his order pad. "My name is not 'Duke,' and I probably won't be able to make it until three-thirty. And I'll have to be back here at five so don't give me any of your epic projects today." He went back to reviewing his order pad, but stopped when he noticed she was still staring at him. "What?" he grunted.

She feigned indignance. "What's with all the conditions, and why can't you actually stay long enough to do the important jobs? It's pretty rude to make an offer and then not be able to follow through."

"Then I take it back," Luke said. "I've got a diner to run and I gotta be back for the dinner rush. But I'm sure your regular handyman will come through for you eventually."

"I don't have a regular handyman. That's why I was complaining about all the handy-work I've got to find a way to fix."

"How can you run an inn and not have a handyman?" Luke bunched his eyebrows.

Lorelai let out a sigh. "That's not the issue—and I believe we already covered that topic when you offered to help me out."

"I can come by at three-thirty, take it or leave it." Luke leaned on the counter and looked at her.

"I'll take it." Lorelai grumbled and turned to leave.

"Good." Luke agreed. "I'll see you then."

"I'll be the one with the whip." _Very dirty! _Lorelai called over her shoulder as she left. She walked back to the inn mentally prioritizing the handyman list she had made for him. _Must have the door knobs on rooms five and eight fixed, they're booked for tomorrow. The loose windows in the lobby can probably wait; it's been warm all this week, but the squeaky step and the electrical outlets need to be done today._ _What else is there…I'll look at the list when I get in. _She quickened her pace.

…

Their relationship had developed into easy banter and one-liners traded across the counter. It was only natural that it would carry over when Luke showed up at the inn with his toolbox in one hand and an electric drill in the other. Lorelai made the expected reference to Bob Vila and then handed him the list. Luke glanced at it and she saw his eyebrows rise, "You need a bookcase by tomorrow?"

"No, the ones with the stars need to be done by tomorrow." Lorelai said.

"That's everything on the list except the bookcase and re-shingling the shed." Luke glanced up at her and then went back to the list.

"I know." Lorelai tried to sound innocent.

Luke shut his eyes for a moment before refocusing them on her. "I know you probably think the Bob Vila joke was funny, but I didn't expect to actually be working on 'This Old House.'"

"I thought you said you could help?"

Luke sighed. "Point me to the rooms."

…

Sometime later Lorelai heard a very surprised Mia in the hallway upstairs. "Lucas Danes, what are you doing here?" There was a crash and the rest of the conversation was too low for her to hear. A few minutes later Mia came down the stairs and stopped at the desk where Lorelai was working. "You didn't tell me you had wrangled Luke into doing all this work." She smiled.

"What's the matter?" Lorelai asked a little worriedly.

"Nothing, dear," Mia chuckled. "I just want to know how you got him to agree to this."

"Actually he offered to help when I was in his diner for lunch."

"He offered?" Mia asked, and Lorelai nodded her head. "I didn't know you knew Luke."

"I just met him a few weeks ago. He's a little grumpy but he makes a good cup of coffee." Lorelai smiled.

"Don't let the attitude fool you, honey. He's a good man." Mia said.

"I'm sure he is." Lorelai replied distractedly as she was sorting through a stack of letters.

"I mean it, Lorelai." Mia smiled. "Don't take advantage of him. He'll do whatever a pretty girl like you would ask."

"Actually, he already told me he wouldn't re-shingle the shed." Lorelai quipped.

"Well, it's late afternoon, he'd have to start that at the break of day to get it finished." Mia reasoned.

They heard a thud at the stairs and saw Luke set his toolbox down in the corner. He adjusted his hat as he walked over and smiled half-heartedly at the two women. "What am I going to have to start at the break of day?"

Mia said, "The shed."

"Are you busy this weekend?" Lorelai blurted out with a grin. Luke raised one eyebrow and Mia looked a little shocked. _That could be taken the wrong way._ "To, uh, fix the shed." She finished awkwardly.

But Mia saved the moment. "She's just kidding Luke. How far did you get tonight?"

Luke blinked and remembered why he had come down in the first place. "I got most of it done, but I got to get back to the diner for dinner." Luke wasn't exactly sure who to address. Mia owned the inn but Lorelai was the one he had made the offer to. Mia took charge for the moment. "Thank you, Luke. I'm just glad we've finally got someone who knows what they're doing." She looked at Lorelai and smiled. "I'll see you later; I've got to make some calls." She went to her office.

Luke cleared his throat and was about to leave when Lorelai spoke. "Sorry about the shed joke." She smiled shyly.

"You don't really need me to shingle the shed, do you?" Luke cocked his head at an angle.

"No, we got roofers coming on Monday. I just wanted to see what you would say when you saw it on the list." Lorelai tried to laugh it off.

"Good, good." She could see Luke was trying to convince himself. "…So, I need to go." He pointed over his shoulder toward the door.

"Okay, bye. Thanks for the help." Lorelai said as Luke turned to leave. "Oh, don't forget your toolbox!"

Luke pulled the list out of his pocket. "I'll be back later tonight. I've only got a couple things left and they won't take too long." He was out the door before Lorelai could thank him again. She added the fact that he finished what he started to her mental list

And that was the first of those semi-sweet, slightly awkward moments between them. Those times when it seemed that they would be good together if they ever got together. The almost ask-outs, the dropped opportunities and missed signals on both sides. To be honest, neither one was completely oblivious to the other, but Luke was jaded by Rachel's recent departure and Lorelai had been wary of any man since Christopher had left her.

…

Two weeks later, Lorelai came into the diner and ordered two cheeseburgers with fries to go. Luke bunched his eyebrows. "I know you're hungry, but don't you think that's a little overboard?"

"They're not both for me." Lorelai said

"Sure." Luke laughed a little as he filled out her ticket.

"One is for my dau—" Lorelai stopped. She still hadn't told him about Rory.

"For who?" Luke looked up.

_May as well tell him now._ "Luke." It was one of the few times that she used his actual name, and he had learned that usually meant something serious was coming. "One of them is for my daughter. Her name is Rory." Lorelai kept her eyes focused on the counter, knowing what was coming next.

"You have a daughter?" Luke sounded only a little surprised.

_Huh? _"Yes, I have a daughter."

"Where is she now?" He asked.

"What?"

"I mean, I'm sure she's with her father." Luke answered. _She wouldn't just leave her daughter alone. I didn't even know she was married._

"No. Why would you think that?" Lorelai began to get a little angry. "Her father left us. He's in California last I heard."

"Sorry, I just assumed…" Now Luke seemed genuinely surprised. "I thought if you had a daughter then her dad would be here too. I mean, I didn't see a wedding ring, but not everyone wears one these days."

"Her dad has been gone a while, and I'm not married, and Rory is with Sookie." Lorelai cleared up.

"Sookie St. James?" Luke asked with a chuckle, as if he couldn't believe that Sookie could be trusted with a kid. Lorelai nodded. "Oh." He said. After a few moments, he grabbed the coffee pot to check on the other customers.

Lorelai was a little thrown off. "Hey!" she called after him. "Is that it? Our conversation is over?"

"I thought it was." Luke said. "You didn't say anything else, and I'm not going to pry about it. I'm sure you don't like other people asking about your personal life any more than I do."

"What does that mean?"

"You just seemed a little tense when you mentioned her father, and unlike most of this town, I can respect privacy." Luke cleared a nearby table. He looked up and noticed she was still watching him. "What?"

"It's just," Lorelai thought a moment. "You don't seem very surprised by all this."

Luke returned to his spot behind the counter and looked at her. "I'm more surprised I didn't know about it. I mean, this is a small town, and I know most everyone in it. I guess I thought I would've heard something." He set the coffee pot back on the warmer and hesitated a moment before saying, "You know, she can come in the diner too. Most people do bring their kids in here."

Lorelai laughed. "You hate kids. The other day, when that baby was crying during lunch, you went on for five minutes about how messy and loud they were."

"I don't hate kids." Luke growled. "I just don't like it when they are loud and obnoxious and make a mess."

"They're kids, Luke." Lorelai said in a 'duh' tone. "That's all they do."

"That's not true. When I was a kid I would never do things like that." Luke said. "My dad would've whipped me for the things parents let their kids get away with now. If people would discipline their kids, they wouldn't be loud and obnoxious and messy."

"You honestly believe that?" Lorelai asked with a smile.

"They wouldn't be _as_ loud and obnoxious and messy." Luke amended.

"I can agree with that." Lorelai said. "And I guess you'll have to meet her eventually, she's been asking about all the take-out cups in the trash."

"How old is your daughter?" Luke asked.

"Eleven." Lorelai answered. She watched as he paused a moment. _That's right, do the math, dude._

"Well then she's probably over that whole crying in public phase." He commented dryly. "She's a good kid, right?"

"Of course," Lorelai responded indignantly.

"Okay then, bring her in some time." Luke boxed her meal up and poured a take-out cup.

"Maybe tomorrow," Lorelai said. "She's having a sleepover at her friend's house since it's Friday." She paid for her meal and picked up the boxes. "Thanks Duke." She said with a smile as she left. Luke just sighed.

…

Lorelai was a little nervous the first time she brought Rory to the diner. She didn't know why, Luke had been nice to her, and hadn't freaked out when he found out about Rory, but Lorelai had never introduced Rory to a man before—not a man like Luke, anyways. Before they went in Rory asked, "Is he nice?"

"Of course he's nice, honey." Lorelai smiled.

"What if he doesn't like me?" Rory sounded nervous.

"Not possible." Lorelai dismissed her daughter's concern. "Just smile when you meet him and he'll love you."


	2. Luke

**Author's Note: **Luke's point of view.

"**It was my first look.  
That's when I swallowed the hook.  
On my first look,  
Around.**

Amor a primeira vista.  
Voce nao, quer que o insista.  
Amor a primeira vista,  
Reacao quimica."

'**First Look,' Jimmy Buffett**

2. Luke

When Luke first met Rory, he knew he could never date Lorelai Gilmore. The little girl smiled and looked at him with hopeful, anxious eyes and then reached out to shake his hand. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Luke."

Luke took her tiny hand in his and gently squeezed it. "Nice to meet you," He tried to smile, but he was out of practice. "And please, just call me Luke."

Rory's smile grew. "Okay. Luke." She let go of his hand. "Where can we sit?"

"Anywhere, I'll be right with you." Luke turned around to check on other customers.

"Thanks, Duke." He heard Lorelai call, but he ignored her.

He came by after a minute and pulled his order pad out. "What can I get you?" He asked in a monotone voice.

The girls stopped their conversation and Lorelai pretended to think. "Hmmm, I need a cheeseburger, and some fries, and some coffee."

Luke looked up from her ticket. "It's after seven. You don't need coffee."

"But Duke!" Lorelai pleaded.

"You're already wired. If you get anymore caffeine in your system your heart will explode."

"Please! I need my coffee, Duke." Lorelai pouted a little.

"Yeah, please Duke." Rory jumped in with a smile and started laughing.

"It's Luke!" He growled, and it came out much harsher than he intended. Rory's brow wrinkled up and he saw her lip tremble.

"Hey, don't yell at my kid!" Lorelai was suddenly angry.

"Don't teach her to tease people." Luke snapped at Lorelai. Now he felt terrible. He looked at the little girl and found a softer voice. "I'm sorry Rory. I didn't mean to yell." But she didn't say anything. "Can you forgive me?"

"Maybe," She pouted.

_God, she's as dramatic as her mother. _He sighed, "What would you like to drink?" He asked gently.

"Do you have chocolate milk?" Rory asked.

"Absolutely," Luke answered.

"Okay, I'd like chocolate milk and a cheeseburger."

"Coming right up," Luke left for the kitchen.

When he came back with their orders they were talking low. Rory looked up as he set their plates down. "I'm sorry for calling you 'Duke.'" She said with wide eyes.

"That's okay," Luke said. "I'm sorry for yelling."

"That's okay," Rory smiled a little. "Can we be friends now? I won't call you 'Duke' anymore." She asked.

"Of course we can." Luke tried to smile, and this time it came out right.

Rory immediately brightened up and took a bite of her burger. "This is so good. Thanks Luke."

"You're welcome," Luke replied. As he walked away he could hear the two restart their conversation, but they were laughing this time.

When the girls were almost finished with dinner Luke came by with the coffee pot and a piece of cherry pie. He refilled Lorelai's mug and set the pie in front of Rory.

"I get pie?" She was surprised.

"Why does she get pie?" Lorelai demanded.

"'Cause we're friends, and she promised to use my actual name." Luke said.

"But Du—Luke! I won't call you that name anymore."

"Doesn't work like that." Luke said. "You can't just say that because you want free pie. You're lucky I'm even giving you coffee this late."

"It's free?" Rory perked up.

"First slice is free." Luke told her.

"Thanks!" Rory grinned.

"That's not fair Duke!" Lorelai pouted.

"I thought you weren't going to call me that anymore?" Luke asked.

"I thought I was going to get free pie." Lorelai retorted.

"If I remember right, your first _two _slices were free, as was your first cup of coffee." Luke reminded her.

"But I want pie tonight."

"A buck a slice. What flavor?" Luke asked.

"Boysenberry," Lorelai sighed.

"Be right back." Luke went to the counter.

Later that night, as Luke was mopping the floor, he went over what Lorelai had said to him as she paid for the meal. "I'm sorry for the little fight at the beginning." She had said quietly. "But thanks for cheering her up with the pie. I think she really likes you." Then she smiled. And he said that was good, that he liked them both and looked forward to seeing them again. Lorelai had just smiled back and told him that eventually he'd get sick of them, but he didn't think that was true.

Still, he felt…depressed. Lorelai had a kid. Luke knew that just because she had a kid didn't mean she didn't date, but when Rory had looked up at him as she shook his hand and then smiled when he brought pie, he knew that if he dated Lorelai Gilmore it would make things weird for all three of them. Especially since Rory had asked to be friends. And they didn't have a man in their lives. Someone who could get the lid off the pickle jar or fix things around their house. Granted, he could tell there wasn't much they needed a man around for, but he wanted to be there if they needed him. _Just my luck. I finally meet a girl I love and I can't do anything about it._ The thought slipped its way into his conscience so casually that for a moment he was dumbstruck when he realized its significance. _Love? Hell, I'm surprised I can remember the word, let alone what it means. How can I possibly be in love? _But deep in his heart, he couldn't deny it. He knew it was stupid and hopelessly romantic, but he believed in love at first sight. Luke Danes would never tell anyone, but the first time he had met Rachel he knew he loved her. It went without saying that love had to grow over time, but the spark had to be there to begin with. Which made it that much harder for him when she left the last time. His love for her had grown over years. She was there for him when his dad died. Then she told him she wanted more, so he took the chance and started a relationship. But Rachel was restless. The first time she left she was gone for a few months before he eventually followed her, but he didn't feel comfortable anywhere except Stars Hollow. The cities were too materialistic, too cold and businesslike. So he went home and she reappeared after having a change of heart. She moved in with him, and seemed happy, but one morning he woke up without her and Miss Patty told him that she had seen Rachel at the bus stop the night before. So that day he made a tremendous effort and put away what was left of his feelings, determined not to care that much again. But the day that Lorelai had whirled into the diner for the first time, he took one look and knew that he was in trouble. He knew as soon as he looked into her eyes that he had been caught in her terminal web. Over the next few weeks he found out how right he was. She was effortlessly beautiful, funny, and had a killer smile. And those eyes…he learned quickly never to look directly into them for long if he wanted to be able to do more than mumble incoherently. It was like looking into the damn sun, and he had always believed people meant that as a figure of speech until he met her. He didn't know much about mythology, but he was sure there had to be some connection between those expressive blue eyes and his inability to refuse anything to her. Her eating habits, on the other hand, could use a little work. But that didn't really matter in the big picture.

Now…now he didn't know what to do. Rory _did_ matter in the big picture. Lorelai had given mixed signals since the day he met her. She would flirt, but it wouldn't go any farther. So he had played along, figuring that was just her personality. But now it made sense, she didn't want to upset her daughter with the possibility of a relationship. Why that was he couldn't comprehend, and didn't think he ever would. But he did know that meant he would have to settle for just seeing her in the diner or fixing things around the inn. So that's what he did. He settled.

He had offered to help out at the inn because he was tired of her complaining to him about all the things she had to fix, and because he was pretty sure that the talk was just her way of asking if he could help without actually saying the words. But he didn't mind, not really. He had always been good with the little fix-its, his dad had taught him when he was younger. Plus, it was a change of pace; something that he could do away from the diner, away from the memories of Rachel. He could never admit to anyone, but Rachel's abuse of his heart had nearly put him down for the count. At the inn, he could fix things, find a logical explanation to why something didn't work and then go about correcting the problem. With Rachel, there was no logic.

Then one day Lorelai came in at lunch chattering away about closing costs and being in escrow. When he asked what was going on, she proudly told him that she had bought a house, and she and Rory would finally be able to move out of the old tool shed and live like human beings. So he gave her a piece of pie on the house and told her congratulations. A few weeks later Miss Patty came in, going on about how much stuff she had to move and if she only had a strong, handsome young man then the whole process would go much smoother. But she was very cryptic about what needed to move and where it was going. Finally, out of sheer frustration, he promised to help if she would just tell him what was going on and stop making such a big fuss. And when Miss Patty told him to meet her at Lorelai's new house, right next door to Babette, he was left wondering how the hell he had been talked into helping.

When Luke showed up at Lorelai's new house, he was met by Babette and Miss Patty. Apparently Lorelai had more stuff than she thought and was having trouble getting the bigger objects across town. So Luke ended up making several runs with his truck to get tables and beds from the inn to her house. He pretended not to notice the winks and comments from Patty and Babette, and ended up doing most of the work. At the end of the day she took him aside for a moment and thanked him for all the help, and he felt a little uncomfortable without anyone else around, so to cover his nervousness he told her to let him know if she found anything around the house that needed repair.

"Why don't you just give me your number so I can call you?" She smiled.

"What?" Luke actually heard the voice of The Robot in his head. _Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!_

"Your phone number," Lorelai said in a slightly patronizing voice. "That way I can call you if I need something." _You can't be that clueless._

"Just come by the diner." He told her. In high school he would've offered his number to her; _just in case she needed help, of course._ Before he became seriously involved with Rachel he would've have agreed to her request without a second thought.

"What if it's late at night?" She asked.

"Fine," He sighed and decided to meet her halfway. "You got a piece of paper?"

She pulled out her cell phone and opened the address book. "Go." She said.

"The diner is 490-1523."

"Got it," She said. "Now what's your home phone?"

"What?" Luke asked.

"I know you don't have one line for both the diner and your hermit hole upstairs." She was smiling again and had fixed her eyes on his. "What if my air conditioner quits this summer? I don't want Rory and I to bake because you were on the phone with your meat guy and I couldn't get through to you."

Unable to look away, he decided it would be easier not to argue and gave her the number to his apartment. "Great." She said after she plugged the number in. "Let me get a piece of paper and I'll give you mine."

"Just give it to me tomorrow." Luke said, half-hoping she would forget. He knew he had no reason to ever call her.

But she came in the next morning and gave him her number as she was paying for breakfast. He didn't know what to do with it, so he stuck the note in his pocket until there was a lull and then put it in the drawer of the little table his phone was on. He didn't even look at the digits.

She, on the other hand, ended up calling him fairly regularly. Loose windows and rickety door knobs kept popping up at her new house, and the inn needed some sprucing up for the summer tourist season that was just around the corner. He must have done a hundred odd jobs during lulls or after closing the diner for the night. A week before Rory got out of school for the summer, she asked him to come over and take a look at the water heater since it was making strange noises. Cesar was closing that night, but the diner was busy and he couldn't get away until after eight.

When she opened the door her eyes were red and she had obviously been crying. "Jesus, what's the matter!" He dropped his tool box and took her hands.

She started laughing. "I'm sorry, nothing's wrong." She sniffled a little.

"You're crying—what happened?" Luke asked gently.

"I'm fine, really." She smiled and wiped her eyes. "I was channel-surfing and 'Love Story' was on." She waved her hand. "It's a great movie, but it always makes me cry."

"You're serious?" Luke still didn't believe her.

"Yes, I'm serious." She looked up at him. "But thanks for the concern."

"Okay," he studied her for a moment before he picked his tool box up and she led him past a studying Rory to the water heater in a little closet by the downstairs bathroom. She pulled up a chair and sat down as he began inspecting the pipes and connections.

"So, have you ever seen it?" She asked.

"Seen what?" Luke glanced at her and then pulled a small flashlight out of his toolbox.

"'Love Story,'" She clarified.

"No," Luke answered, concentrating hard.

"It's a really good movie." She said.

"I'll take your word for it." Luke was now on his back, trying to get at a tangle of hoses deep in the corner.

"Don't you want to see it?" Lorelai asked.

"Is it a chick-flick?"

"No!" Lorelai quickly answered. "Well...kinda." She admitted.

"I don't like chick-flicks. Can't stand weepy movies," Luke answered distractedly.

"Oh, come on. Everyone should see that movie once." Lorelai said.

Luke stopped what he was doing and pushed himself out of the corner so that he could look at her. "Are you going to sit here and talk to me until I finish?"

"Of course," She smiled innocently.

Luke rolled his eyes. "Here, hold the flashlight. If you're going to talk then you may as well help."

Lorelai leaned as far into the tiny space as she could and tried not to shine the light in Luke's eyes. "So, what was with the big brother act when you came to the door tonight?"

"I don't know." Luke reached for another screwdriver. "The only time I've seen a girl cry is when something was wrong. The last time I saw my sister was when her boyfriend cleaned out her bank account and left town."

"I'm sorry." Lorelai said quietly.

"It's fine, now—she's doing better. I just hope I'm ready the next time it happens." Luke grunted as he tightened a set of screws.

"Why would you say that?"

"Because it will," Luke stopped and looked up at her through the tangle. "She's a smart girl, but she makes bad personal decisions and she won't change. Believe me—I've tried to reason with her." Luke grabbed a wrench and went back to work.

"Luke, I'm sor—"

"Don't worry about it." He cut her off. "Can you hand me the pliers?"

When he was finished, he shook the hoses and then tapped the water heater with his foot. "That should work—I think things just needed to be tightened up." He packed up his tools and headed for the door.

"Hey, Luke," Rory called from over her book in the living room, as if she just realized he was in the house.

"Hi," Luke smiled

He reached the door and turned to say a quick goodbye to Lorelai, but she spoke first. "Thanks for coming over tonight."

"You're welcome," Luke replied.

"Hey, what are you doing this Friday?" She asked.

"Why?"

"Oh, Rory's going to have her friend over for a little end-of-school bash and it would be nice to have some adult company to help me get through the night." She smiled.

"I don't know…" Luke thought aloud.

"Come on, we can watch 'Love Story.' You spend too much time in that diner anyways. You need to socialize, have a little fun. And nothing's more fun than a Gilmore movie night extravaganza."

"Let me think about it. Fridays are usually kind of busy at the diner." Luke said.

"That's fine—the party won't get started until after eight." She walked out the door with him. "Let me know tomorrow morning." She paused and looked him in the eye. "Thanks for all your help Luke."

"Your welcome, I'll see you tomorrow." He got in his truck and drove home.


	3. Rory

**Author's Note: **It's been a while since I've posted stories so I'm trying to get the hang of it again. Right now, I'm shooting for weekly updates on this story, since the chapters are a little complicated and I've got to make it all fit together without it coming out as crazy-talk. Patience is a virtue, so bear with me.

Thank you **minor-thing** for giving me a chance. To address your issue, it is difficult to do a story set in 'early years,' but I've often found myself wondering how the characters could have reached where they were. The show, especially the first five seasons, is always referencing or hinting back to how things started. For example, am I the only one who wonders how Lorelai knows Luke said "Finally!" after watching 'Love Story.' Or why the girls bring flowers every Thanksgiving even though Luke doesn't have a vase. Or am I the only one who is crazy enough to pick up on little things and wonder if it really makes a difference? (By the way, I think I just dropped spoilers...) I would have thought that **gilmoregirl1979** would have written something about the 'Love Story' thing in WITS, I would love to see her take on it. But she took a wonderful angle with the whole 'Misery' movie, which I think is brilliant. Anyways, these issues and several others will be examined...

To **avesnovuelan**: Glad I could grant your wish. As for the language...maybe Portugese? The song is about Brazil, and if I remember right one of the major languages spoken there is Portugese. I listened to it for a very long time to try and figure out the words, but I was stumped. My Spanish is not as good as it once was, but I could tell that it was definitely a Romance language--Portugese, Spanish, Italian, French, etc. I looked up the lyrics and what I posted was the most popular choice among the web sites. In all likelyhood the official lyrics are probably Spanish, but like I said, mine isn't what it used to be...

On with the story. If you've heard this Jimmy Buffett song then you know why I've chosen it.

* * *

"**Constantly amazed by the blades of the fan on the ceiling,**

**Those clever little glances she gives me can't help but be appealing."**

'**Little Miss Magic,' Jimmy Buffett.**

3. Rory

She doesn't remember much specific about him until just after she turned fourteen. The years before are a flicker-show of unconnected memories and out of context phrases that have somehow strung together to form a portrait that is the foundation of her relationship with him. She does remember that he hates to be called Duke, but she also remembers that he promised to be her friend. She latched onto him as the male influence in her life because she knew in her young heart that he was a good man. He preferred to work in the background, but he treated her like an adult and was nice to her mother. She liked that he would slip her a piece of pie when she had a tough day or bicker with her mother about her coffee intake. He was a constant presence and she felt comfortable around him. It was rare for Rory to trust an adult that wasn't her mother or a teacher, and even more unusual because she didn't trust men. She had seen her mother cry once after Christopher had called and couldn't understand why her father lived across the country if he missed them so much. Luke, on the other hand, was always there; even when her mother called him at one in the morning the night that the heater went out, and when she had asked him to go to a memorial service when her pet caterpillar died.

She remembers that he helped them move into their house, and every time Babette or Miss Patty would comment on Luke her mother would blush and half-heartedly deny feeling the same way. Even at that age, Rory knew that Luke didn't drop everything he was doing for just anyone, and the look on her mother's face was the same one Rory got when her friends teased her about liking a cute boy. For the next few weeks she was deathly afraid that her mother would fall in love with Luke and get married before her father had the chance to come back and complete their family. But Luke politely kept his distance, and soon Lorelai's love vibes seemed to disappear.

She got used to seeing him in the mornings before school and in the evening when Lorelai came home from work. The diner was the first place she could go by herself, and she ended up spending many afternoons at the counter while she waited for her mom to get off of work. Rory marveled at how much he could communicate without actually saying anything. Most of the time he would respond to her and Lorelai with a raised eyebrow, a shrug of the shoulders, or a grunt. But he listened well, and usually that was all either one of the Gilmore girls needed. She remembers the summer when she was thirteen and had a very in depth discussion with him—about baseball of all things—after she had seen 'The Sandlot' and been inspired to read _The Boys of Summer,_ a book about life in professional baseball. Luke had been trying to fix the water heater again that day, so he gave her a flashlight and she followed him around the house as he checked electrical connections and circuit boxes. When Lorelai came home from Doose's she found Rory on a step-stool and Luke half-way in the closet. Rory talked constantly, and Luke would grunt or add a little comment here and there to explain a rule or tell a story about when he played. When Rory noticed her mom she jumped off the stool and nearly knocked it over on top of Luke. "Mom! I finally get the Infield Fly Rule! And Luke taught me how to reset the circuit-breaker if we 'pop a fuse.'" She put air quotes around the phrase and smiled. Lorelai thought that was great since she knew little about baseball and less about circuits. Then Rory remembered Luke. "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to leave you in the dark." But Luke was already crawling out of the closet. "That's fine, I'm done." And Rory categorized that as another typical Luke response: _don't worry, I've got it covered._

* * *

"**I catch a little more dialogue every day,**

**I see those big brown eyes start to lookin' astray. **

**Your mother's still the only other woman for me,**

**Little miss magic, what you gonna be?"**

'**Little Miss Magic,' Jimmy Buffett**

The year Rory turned fourteen she and her mom went to see Christopher in California for four days. Rory had a really good time and was happy to finally see her parents together and laughing. Chris met them at their hotel door every morning and they spent the day together. They walked the beach, tried dozens of restaurants and even visited a couple museums and libraries. But the night before they had to leave, she heard her parents get into an argument just outside the room after she had gone to bed. There wasn't yelling and screaming, but she could hear the hurt in her mother's voice. "You were so selfish, Chris. You moved across the country. You couldn't even commit to your own daughter. Now, you can call her and you can visit her, and we may even be able to visit you once in a while, but don't expect to be able to just jump back into our lives. Not after you left us."

The flight home had been very quiet, and when they made it through the front door Lorelai put her bag down and sighed an incredibly sad sigh. "You want to go to Luke's, babe?" She asked Rory. "I need some coffee or the jet lag is going to kill me."

"Sure," Rory knew something was up, but didn't ask.

It was late, so there were only a few people in the diner. Luke looked up at the sound of the bells, stoic as ever. "How was your trip?"

"It was great." Rory smiled.

"I'm guessing you need some sustenance from the long flight." Luke said.

"You guessed right." Lorelai said. "I need pie and coffee."

"Coffee's going to throw your body clock off." Luke told her.

"I don't care. I haven't had a decent cup in four days." Lorelai sat down dramatically at a table.

Luke shook his head and poured her a cup. "You want cherry or blueberry?"

"Cherry." They both said, and Luke went back to the counter.

Rory set her book down and told Lorelai, "I'll be right back." She walked up to Luke as he was plating the pie slices. "Hey, Luke."

"Hey Rory, happy birthday," he smiled.

"Thanks. Listen, Mom's feeling a little down. Do you think you've got a little something extra to go with the pie?"

"I got some chocolate swirl ice cream I made earlier." Luke offered.

"That should work. Thanks." Rory smiled.

"No problem." Luke went into the kitchen and Rory sat down with her mother.

"What are you two conspiring about?" Lorelai joked

"Nothing, he just told me happy birthday." Rory said.

Luke came by with the pie and ice cream. "Here you go." He refilled Lorelai's coffee.

"Ice cream?" Lorelai looked surprise.

"You looked like you could use a little pick-me-up after the flight. I'm sure the airports were terrible." Luke said.

When Luke left Lorelai turned to Rory. "Did you tell him to add the ice cream?"

"No…" Rory tried, but Lorelai gave her the 'stern mother' look. "Okay, I did."

"Thanks, babe." Lorelai smiled.

When Lorelai was paying for her meal she thanked Luke for the ice cream. Luke just shrugged it off and looked at her. "Are you doing alright?"

"Yeah, it was good that she got to see her dad. But, I don't know, I'm still angry at him." She sighed.

"Why?"

"It's just…our history, I guess. We get along better now, but for a while…it was just so hard to even talk to him without losing my temper. When he went to California I just couldn't believe he would leave us. But he's trying to get himself together."

"At least Rory had a good time." Luke said.

"Yeah," Lorelai agreed and picked up her purse.

"Hey," Luke handed her a small bag.

"What's this?"

"A little something for the road," Luke told her.

Lorelai opened the bag. "Donuts," she sounded happy.

"Yeah, well, you're probably still on California time, so you'll be hungry pretty soon."

"Thanks," Lorelai smiled. "Well, goodnight."

"Goodnight." Luke went back to wiping down the counter.

When Lorelai met Rory outside Rory immediately noticed the bag. "Whatcha got?" She asked curiously.

"Donuts—and you already knew that." Lorelai handed her one.

"No I didn't." Rory said between bites. Lorelai stared her down again. "I didn't tell him to do this. Although, I'm not complaining." She smiled.

"Really?" Lorelai asked.

"Really." Rory said. "Is there a sprinkled left?"

Lorelai handed Rory the bag and discreetly looked back into the diner to see Luke still wiping down the counter. But Rory caught the look; and the tiny smile on her mother's lips.

* * *

"**I see a little more of me every day, **

**I feel a little more moustache turning gray.**

**Your mother's still the only other woman for me,**

**Little miss magic, what you gonna be?"**

'**Little Miss Magic,' Jimmy Buffett**

That Christmas Lorelai invited him to the block party at their house. All the town regulars were there, but Lorelai spent the night on the back porch with Luke. Every time Rory went to check on them they were in the same position—Luke resting against one stair rail and swirling his beer bottle lazily, while Lorelai sat a few feet away, leaning slightly in his direction and alternating between frenzied talking and sitting quietly. Rory overheard other party-goers whispering hopes of a budding romance, and even Lane asked her why Lorelai and Luke hadn't gotten together yet. "For the last three weeks my mom thought they were engaged." Lane laughed. Rory smiled, but didn't think it was that funny.

The next week Lorelai invited him to go along with her and Rory to Babette's for New Year's. They showed up late and he left shortly after midnight, but Lorelai dragged him around the entire time he was there. Rory felt her mom giving off love vibes again, and didn't know what to think about it. She wanted her father to come back, but she wanted her mother to be happy. And she hadn't seen Lorelai go on a date for a long time.

Rory had to laugh when Lorelai tried to get him to dance. Rory, along with most of the room, had keyed into their conversation. Luke looked at her as if she had offered him a cup of coffee, "You know I don't dance." He growled. "Every year you ask me about the dance marathon and every year I have to tell you that I don't dance. And then you pretend to be sad until I give you a free donut."

"I still cannot believe you don't know how to dance." Lorelai was standing close to him now.

Luke took a small step back and frowned. "I didn't say I don't know how to dance. I said I don't dance—as in I don't _want_ to dance."

"You and James Dean must have been _so_ cool at your high school sock hops. Although I don't know what he would think of the flannel." Lorelai rubbed a sleeve between her thumb and forefinger.

"I don't know what he'd think about a woman who can't say no." Luke shot back.

"_So Dirty!_" Lorelai leaned his way and flashed a wicked smile.

"That's not what I meant!" Luke turned red at the double-entendre, and Rory laughed at his embarrassment. _Mom really puts him through a lot._

"Oh, come on. I'm sorry Luke." Lorelai batted her eyes. "Humor a poor old spinster for the night."

"You're not a spinster." Luke dismissed her comment and Rory lost track of them as the two drifted toward the drinks table.

After several more minutes she could hear that Lorelai was still trying. "You can't possibly ignore my feminine wiles, Lucas Danes."

"I've had practice." Luke commented dryly.

"I know you find me irresistible." Lorelai dropped her voice to a sultry tone. "Don't make me prove it right here in public."

"Jeeze," Luke looked extremely uncomfortable. "I think you need to lay off the party punch."

"Fine, you don't have to dance…" Lorelai pouted.

"Thank _God_."

"Just stand there." Lorelai took his hands and sort of leaned into him. Luke went red again and glared at a few party-goers he caught staring at them. "Pretend you're not stone cold and callous for the next five minutes." She whispered, and Rory moved closer to hear their conversation. "It's almost midnight. We don't even have to move around. Just hold me." Lorelai smiled that smile Rory knew she saved for when she wanted to get her way with Luke.

Rory heard him sigh and knew then that he had caved. "Fine," Luke said. "But we're not actually going to dance, and I'm leaving right after the stupid ball drops."

"I guess I can live with that; I know it's way past your bed time." Lorelai teased.

Luke hesitantly put his hands on her waist and Lorelai wrapped hers around his neck. Rory noticed that her mother looked so small when Luke held her. True to her word, Lorelai allowed them to just stand, swaying ever so slightly to the music. They didn't talk, and when the countdown began Rory moved to join them. The whole room erupted when the count reached zero, and Rory noticed that even Luke offered a half-hearted 'hooray' when Lorelai nudged him in the ribs.

As soon as it had quieted down, Luke was saying goodbye to them, but Lorelai followed him out to the door. Rory watched through the window as they said goodnight, and Lorelai pulled Luke into an awkward hug. Luke looked uncomfortable, like he didn't know how to hug someone. _Come to think of it, I've never seen him hug someone._ _Three years is a long time to go hug-less._ When they parted Lorelai looked at the window and Rory ducked quickly to avoid her gaze. By the time she got the nerve to look out the window again, Luke was disappearing into the night and the front door had opened to let Lorelai back in.

"Hey, where'd you go?" Rory asked.

"I just needed a breath of fresh air." Lorelai smiled.

"Is Luke gone?"

"Yeah, you know Luke, babe. He's not much of a night-owl."

"Yeah," Rory agreed.

"You want to stay another half-hour or so?" Lorelai asked. "I'm pretty tired tonight too. The inn was terrible today."

"That sounds good." Rory said. She watched Lorelai the rest of the night, who was unusually quiet and withdrawn.

When they left the party Rory couldn't contain herself any longer, "What's going on with you and Luke?"

"What?" Lorelai seemed confused.

"Are you two dating or something?" Rory pressed. "You can tell me if you are."

Lorelai laughed a little. "I thought I saw you snooping earlier. Alright, what did you see out the window tonight?"

"I saw you two hug goodnight, but then I ducked and by the time I looked again you were inside."

"Nothing's going on with me and Luke, hon. Why would you think that?"

"Momma Kim thought you two were engaged until Lane filled her in." Rory told her.

She picked up on the slight hesitation in her mother's voice. "Miss Patty's been working overtime, eh?" Lorelai quipped.

"Mom," Rory said in a tired voice.

"Listen, Luke is a really nice guy—you know that. But nothing's going on between the two of us." Lorelai explained.

"Then why have you two been spending so much time together? You invited him to the Christmas party and to tonight—and we go to the diner at least once a day, unless you two get into a fight. Then you're just crabby until you two make up."

"Rory," Lorelai sounded frustrated. "Nothing is going on—things are fine. I just thought that he would enjoy some time outside the diner. Other than the occasional fishing trip, I've never seen him take a day off or just go out for a night, have you?"

"No," Rory admitted.

"Well, that's why I asked him. He's done a lot for us and I wanted to try and return the favor."

"But why the hug? Plus you were hanging all over him tonight." Rory blurted, and then felt embarrassed. "I mean, I didn't think he liked hugs." She tried to recover.

Lorelai sighed. "He looked like he needed a hug. He is _always_ alone, Rory. Sometimes I wonder why he chooses to be so reclusive." She stopped and smiled a sad little smile. "One day, when you're at college and you go to a kegger, you'll be introduced to Bacchus."

"I already know Bacchus, I read the Mythology." Rory commented, but Lorelai ignored her.

"And you'll find that when you two are friends, you end up doing things that you normally wouldn't do. Dancing on the table, belting out Fleetwood Mac at the top of your lungs, things like that. Luckily for you, I've retired from table-dancing. But I did notice how sad and lonely Luke looked. I just wanted to cheer him up. My heart was in the right place, I probably just didn't show my concern in the best way."

"I think Luke was right. I think you had a little too much of Miss Patty's punch." Rory said.

Lorelai looked upset. "How many people heard him say that?"

"Not many," Rory replied.

Lorelai scrunched her eyebrows. "So pretty much everyone?"

"Well, you two were pretty entertaining tonight." Rory tried to lighten the mood.

"Great, so now I embarrassed my self and my daughter."

"I just can't be seen with you in public anymore." Rory said matter-of-factly.

"Was I _that _bad?" Lorelai sounded worried.

"No," Rory assured her. "But you were kind of clingy with him tonight." She looked her mother in the eye as they reached the top step of their porch. "I just want to know what's going on, mom."

Lorelai opened the door, and Rory couldn't see her face. "Nothing's going on Rory. I'm sorry I embarrassed you tonight." She quickly hung her coat. "I'm going to go to bed, hon. I'm exhausted from the inn today." She smiled and gave Rory a hug.

"Okay, goodnight." Rory said.

"Goodnight." Lorelai walked up the stairs, and Rory couldn't help but think she also looked sad and lonely.

* * *

Help with a young Rory is always appreciated. I hope the story setup is beginning to make a little more sense. Until the next chapter... 


	4. Lorelai II

**Author's Note: **First and foremost, I have to thank **Robinpoppins** for all the help in editing this chapter and making sure everything is squared away. She is the first beta I've had and I think she's doing an excellent job. By the way, as a shameless plug, read her stories. And thanks to everyone for having the patience to stick with this fic. Writing--at least for me--is a painstaking process. It doesn't come easy and quite often the work doesn't come out the way I intend. Hemingway went through something like 260 revisions before he finally published "A Farewell to Arms." While I'm not quite that far gone, sometimes I feel that way. Patience and calm are virtues I lack, and I tend to take it out on my writings.

* * *

**"Girl of a thousand faces,  
From a long line of basket cases.  
Daughter of a fortune teller,  
Oh, the lovely Isabella.**

**She's changing channels,  
Staying on her toes.  
Changing channels,  
As she goes."  
'Changing Channels,' Jimmy Buffett**

4. Lorelai

She was so happy that Rory and Luke got along. It was one of those little things that had a tendency to make people much happier than they should have been about the situation. So, what?—her daughter and the diner owner were friends. If they weren't, Luke still would've served them; he just wouldn't have made conversation with them. Lorelai had the feeling that Luke served a lot of people he didn't particularly care for. Despite their bumpy start, it wasn't long before Rory had Luke's schedule memorized. She looked forward to Danish Day and warned Lorelai to be nice on the days he had early deliveries.

When they moved into the house, Lorelai had never been more thankful to see a beat up old Chevrolet in her life. She had calculated that after the down payments and closing costs, she had exactly two hundred and forty-two dollars and eighty-seven cents to last until her next paycheck. She had more, but that was reserved for making double payments on her mortgage and paying the first month's utilities. She didn't want to dip into that slush fund unless she absolutely had to. Stars Hollow didn't have a U-Haul office—the nearest one was in Litchfield. When she found out it cost at least one hundred and ten dollars to use one for the day, she decided that she could move everything herself. There wasn't much that she would have trouble with—the beds, the television and its stand, and the refrigerator were the biggest things she and Rory owned. The washer and dryer were coming two days after they moved in.

The one thing she didn't know was how she was going to move these things. She was thinking about taking out the seats of the inn's fifteen-passenger van and bribing a few high school boys to move things, but when Miss Patty heard about this she smiled and told her, "Don't worry, darling. I'll take care of it." When moving day came Luke showed up at the Independence Inn, sighed when he saw all the crap she was trying to cram in her jeep, and told her to dump everything in the bed of his truck before he followed back to her new house.

During the move-in process, Babette and Miss Patty were so naughty about Luke that she eventually sent Rory inside to tell Luke where everything should go, and tried to explain that she and Luke were just friends.

Babette just looked at her. "Please, honey." She said.

Miss Patty agreed. "Lorelai, dear, I wish I were young enough for Luke and me to be just friends." She smiled.

But they didn't really press the issue. They would hint and tease, but Lorelai felt it was all in good fun.

When she took him aside at the end of the day to say 'thank you,' she couldn't remember Luke looking more uncomfortable. He kept looking around, avoiding her eyes. And she still smiles when she remembers his reaction when she asked him for his phone number. His eyebrows went up and he just looked so _surprised_. Then he became very guarded, and she could tell that something in the moment brought up a memory he didn't like. Eventually he gave in, and it was a good thing too. She ended up calling him nearly every day the next two weeks about loose windows, rickety doors, projects around the inn. Mia was right, he would do almost anything she asked, and she didn't mind having him around. It was nice to be able to rely on a man for a change.

Then one night she got caught up watching 'Love Story' and forgot that he wouldn't be over until late, so when the doorbell rang she didn't think anything of the tear stains on her face as she opened the door. Luke looked at her for a split second and then absolutely _freaked_. Well, he didn't freak, he just became so…concerned for her. He took her hands and asked her in the most comforting voice she ever heard what was wrong. And when she told him she'd just been watching a movie, he didn't believe a word, and it took Lorelai several minutes to convince him that it really was just a movie, but she could feel his eyes piercing her, trying to see if she was truly alright. Usually, Luke made her leave him alone until he was finished with whatever he was doing. But that night he handed her a flashlight and let her talk, and it was nice to have another adult who would just _listen _to her and let her get some thoughts out without overanalyzing every little thing. He downplayed the whole incident at the door when she asked why he was so concerned. That was the first time he mentioned any details about his sister, but he shut her down when she asked more questions about his family. It was scary, really, how little of the information that she knew about his family came from him. She had asked once very early in their friendship why he had a sign for a hardware store above his diner, and the only thing Luke said was that his dad used to own a hardware store when he was a kid. Nothing about how his father became violently sick and passed away. Or how his mother had died when he was still very young. Or how his sister had left at the worst possible time, only to repeatedly fall apart and beg him to help her get back on her feet. These things she learned quickly from Miss Patty and Babette, as if the facts were part of the mythology of Stars Hollow. But even Miss Patty and Babette couldn't tell her much more than that. She knew that he didn't talk much about his family, but it would've been nice if he had opened up a little just for her. For now, his past was off limits, and he let her know that. That night she started calling him by his real name. 'Duke' became a sort of pet name, a card she could pull out to frustrate him or get her way or just joke around with him when he seemed too tense.

She thinks that it was his concern for her that eventually led her to invite him over for the end of school party she was throwing for Lane and Rory. It had taken a lot of negotiating for Momma Kim to allow Lane to spend the night with Rory, and the victory left her feeling like she could convince anyone of anything. So when she realized that Luke cared, she thought he was the one she'd like to spend a couple hours with one night. It most definitely was not a date, she told herself. It was just a get together. Besides, there would be children there. Rory got to have a good friend over, so she should be able to also. After Momma Kim, it would be a piece of cake to convince Luke to come over.

* * *

Luke held out all day, but when Lorelai and Rory came in for dinner he finally agreed to come over, and he told them he'd bring dinner. That Friday night he showed up with burgers and fries for everyone along with some pie and coffee. Rory and Lane huddled down at the coffee table while Luke and Lorelai sat on opposite ends of the small couch. Luke sat through a few movies, not really paying attention to them since the three girls talked constantly. By ten-thirty Lane and Rory were nodding off, and decided to go to Rory's room. After a couple seconds of awkward silence Lorelai tossed the remote to Luke and stood up. "Well, let me throw some of this stuff out and then we can start our movie." Luke started to move but she stopped him, "I've got it; watch a few minutes of sports or something. I know 'Cinderella' and 'The Little Mermaid' are classics, but I don't think they're your favorites." She left Luke to channel-surf while she tossed the trash into a brown paper bag and brought it to the kitchen. "Do you want a beer or something?" She called to him. 

"Uh, sure."

She pulled two from the fridge and popped the tops off before coming back in the living room. Luke was concentrating on a baseball game, but looked up when she handed a bottle to him. "Thanks." He took a small sip.

"Yeah," She said. "Okay, the baseball is going to have to go off, it's movie time." She picked up the DVD and popped it into the player.

Luke switched the channel over and asked, "What is this again? 'Love Boat'?"

"'Love Story,'" Lorelai laughed a little.

"My mistake," Luke said sarcastically. "How sappy is this movie?"

"It's not sappy," Lorelai defended. "It's moving, it's sad, it's depressing, but not sappy. And it's pretty sad; I'd say at least a three hanky."

Luke raised an eyebrow, "Great."

Lorelai smiled. "Now, just a warning, I will cry during this movie, especially at the end. But nothing is wrong with me."

"Okay," Luke answered a little slowly.

"You don't like crying?"

"Not especially." Luke commented.

"Well, you'll have to deal with it." They could still fit a pillow between them, but they were sitting closer together. Lorelai took the remote from Luke. "Okay, you are about to see one of the great love stories of all time. It is epic, complete with hardship, un-approving family members, and tragedy."

"Sounds kind of like they ripped it off of Shakespeare," Luke said dryly.

"No, this much better. It's in actual English, and you can understand why things are happening. With Shakespeare all you get is a bunch of badly dressed men running around before they overreact and kill themselves, therefore bringing pain and sorrow to those around them. Which, by the way, I never understood why his characters were always so melodramatic. I mean, take Othello. His jealousy, his insecurity. He was way past 'Every Breath You Take.' Total stalker—"

"Will you please start the movie—I really don't feel like reliving my high school English classes tonight." Luke told her.

"Alright," Lorelai squished around a bit and pushed play.

She surreptitiously watched him watch the movie. The room was dark, with the only light coming from the kitchen and the sliver under Rory's door. He seemed so tense, like he was concentrating entirely on the movie. Every once in a while a giggle would come from the girls in the other room, and his eyebrows would scrunch in the same manner as when Rory lost her place in a book. But as the movie went on, he seemed to relax. When Lorelai began to cry during the scene when Oliver rejects his father's RSVP, she saw Luke shift uncomfortably, but he didn't say a word. She watched as his face set into a scowl at every sad scene, and smiled a little at the thought that maybe he was just covering up his own feelings. By the time Jenny died Lorelai was crying quietly and Luke was still wearing a scowl, sighing quietly every few minutes. When the credits began to roll Lorelai stopped the movie and turned the sofa lamp on low.

Luke took a deep breath, "Finally." He said, like he had survived something awful.

Lorelai looked at him, incredulous. "'Finally?' That's what you say at the end of this great movie?"

"It wasn't that great." Luke stared at the television screen.

"I can't believe I'm hearing this." Lorelai wiped away a tear. "Are you really this stone-cold?"

Luke looked over at her and didn't say anything for a moment. "I didn't mean it like that." He offered.

"Then how _did_ you mean it?"

"I don't know…" Luke trailed off for a second. "I mean, yes, it is a sad movie. But you were right, it's melodramatic. Life is not like that."

"My life is like that." Lorelai said. "I can totally relate to Oliver and how he feels about his family. When I left home it was terrible, my parents and I didn't speak to each other for a couple of years. We're a little better now, but it's still mostly a Christmas and holidays relationship."

"Why?" Luke asked.

"Because," Lorelai sighed. Luke didn't know her story yet. He just knew that she had gotten pregnant young and things didn't work out with Rory's father. She decided to tell him. "When I left, I didn't say goodbye. I just ran, and I took Rory with me. I didn't call them for two months, until I was working for Mia and had a place to live and knew that I had things under control. The night I ran away I just left them a note that said I was leaving."

Luke was stoic, except for his eyes. Like he was forcing his body to remain calm but his mind was having a hard time grasping what she had told him. He blinked before looking into her eyes and said, "I didn't know."

"It's fine." Lorelai waved a hand. "I'm fine talking about it. It actually helps a little—to talk about it, I mean—every once in a while. There was just so much going on and I was so unhappy. I didn't want Rory to grow up in an unhappy house and I knew her father couldn't be there for us. We had actually broken up a couple months before I left. My parents couldn't believe it, and my mother was furious. After we broke up, Chris didn't come see Rory anymore—he visited maybe twice. So I told him that we were leaving and he could come with or we could call him when we got somewhere, but he told me not to bother. I couldn't take it anymore, so I left. And I stopped at Stars Hollow because it was late and I figured that if I used any more money on a bus fare it would be impossible to feed Rory. I didn't even plan for where I was going to go—I was usually so good about having a plan, but that night I just grabbed what I needed and left. My parents had been gone all day and were going to a charity function that evening, so I figured that was the best head start I'd get on them for a while." She wiped another tear away, but this one wasn't because of the movie. "So I showed up at the inn and Mia opened the door. And the rest is history." She sniffled a little.

"I'm sorry." Luke said.

Lorelai shook her head, feeling a little vulnerable at the moment. "Don't be. Everything worked out. And remember, love means never having to say you're sorry. Don't you agree?" She smiled a little.

"See, I can't agree with that." Luke shook his head. "It's _so_ not true. I think my parents—every married couple I've known actually—would probably agree with me. People hurt each other; that's just a fact of life. I think love means being able to say you're sorry, and being able to accept it when the other person apologizes to you. You take the other person, faults and all." He paused a moment. "I mean, that's just been my life experience."

_Is he really telling me his viewpoint on **love**? I can barely get him to talk about baseball._ Lorelai looked him in the eye and was surprised at the emotion she could see. "How did you come up with that?" She asked.

Luke sighed, as if talking of his family were a troubling, difficult thing. "When my mom died, it was hard. It wasn't like the end of this movie, not at all. Things were a mess for a while, especially with my sister. And then when my dad died, it was the same thing all over again. My sister…she was something else for a while. I didn't think I could take it anymore. But…it's family, you know? So I had to, I just did the best I could for her. I mean, at the end of the day, that's all you have left: family and the friends who really care about you."

Lorelai couldn't hold his eyes anymore, and deep in her heart she felt her opinion shift a little towards his point of view. _That's so true._ "Yeah, I think you're right."

Luke's eyes flicked to the DVD player, and he saw the time. His voice returned to that gruff, slightly guarded quality again. "I should probably go—I've got to open tomorrow."

Lorelai shook herself out of her thoughts. "It's after midnight, Luke. You should've said something, we could've held off until another night."

"That's fine." Luke picked up some of the remaining leftovers. "I don't really mind." He took the plates into the kitchen.

Lorelai grabbed the bottles and dirty dishes. "I'll get this. You go home, I bet you have to get up super-early tomorrow—" she remembered the time. "Or later today." She smiled.

"I can help out."

"Really, it's okay."

"Lorelai," he stopped what he was doing and looked at her, and she was already beginning to recognize that slightly exasperated tone of voice as the one he used when he just wanted her to hear what he was going to say. "I clear tables and do dishes for a living; I'm pretty good at this. Besides, it goes a lot faster if you have a little help." He scrubbed off the leftover food and began loading her dishwasher. Lorelai went to get the rest of the stuff in the living room and noticed Rory's light was still on. She put the plates on the counter and went back to Rory's room. She opened the door and saw that Rory and Lane had fallen asleep on the bed. Rory stirred a little when Lorelai clicked the lamp off. "Mommy?" she mumbled.

"Yeah, babe," Lorelai sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Is movie night over?" She wondered without opening her eyes.

"Yeah."

"Did you watch 'Love Story'?" Rory asked.

"Yeah," Lorelai said

"I like that movie." She smiled in her sleepy state.

"I know."

There was a noise in the kitchen and Rory opened her eyes a little. "What was that?"

"Luke is loading the dishwasher." Lorelai explained.

"He's still here?" Rory asked. When Lorelai nodded Rory looked confused. "But he's got to open tomorrow. He's going to be so tired. You better be nice to him or he won't give you coffee."

"I will." Lorelai promised.

"Mom?"

"Yes."

"Did he cry? During 'Love Story'?" Rory asked.

"No," Lorelai smiled a little.

"Aww, I was hoping he would. He's always so solemn."

"That's a big word to use after midnight." Lorelai told her.

"It's after midnight?" Rory sounded surprised.

"Mmhm."

"I'm going back to sleep. Tell Luke goodnight for me."

"Goodnight, babe," Lorelai tip-toed out and shut the door.

Luke looked up as she walked toward him. "It took me forever to find the dish soap, but everything's loaded and ready if you want to run it tonight."

"I'll wait until I get up tomorrow." She said.

"You do know how to use this, don't you?" Luke teased

"Yes." She told him with a small smile.

"Okay." Luke raised his hands a little in surrender. "I'm going to get going then."

"Okay." Lorelai followed him to the door and he put on his coat. "Thanks for coming over." She wanted to hug him goodnight; she couldn't get the defeated expression he wore while talking of his family out of her mind.

"Sure. Goodnight." Luke avoided her goodnight hug by opening the front door before she could get close enough.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow." Lorelai said as he walked to his truck.

* * *

**"You know I can't help but be,  
Part of my own philosophy.  
****Not unique just distantly in love."  
'Distantly in Love,' Jimmy Buffett**

She thinks now that that night is when they started to lean on each other. In the beginning, it was almost imperceptible. But it grew, despite the fact that he railed about her coffee intake and she called him Duke. Then, the summer that Rory was thirteen, the water heater broke again. So she called Luke and he was able to come right over because, for once, the diner wasn't busy on a Saturday afternoon. He showed up as she was leaving to get a few things from the market, but she told him not to worry; Rory would keep him company and she'd been asking a lot of questions about baseball anyways. When Lorelai came back about twenty minutes later she heard Rory's voice through the open window, and was reminded of the scene in 'Jurassic Park' when the little boy Tim wouldn't stop talking to Dr. Grant. Rory was going a mile a minute, and Luke would add a distracted grunt here and there while still concentrating on whatever he was doing.

Neither Rory nor Luke knows this, but she quietly opened the door and watched them from the living room while they talked. The third time Rory asked about the infield fly rule, Luke stopped what he was doing, stood up, and asked for a piece of paper. Rory ran into her room and came back out with paper and a pencil, and Luke went to the kitchen table. "Okay," she could hear him say, and there was scratching as he drew something. "I'll try to draw it out, it might be easier. This is the ball field, and these are the bases…" Lorelai watched as Rory concentrated hard and Luke went on about force outs and double plays. She didn't understand most of it—she didn't care for sports—but after three or four minutes Rory hit the table and exclaimed, "Ohhh! I get it now. It seems so simple once it clicks."

"Yeah, well, it's easier to understand when you can see a picture." Luke said.

Rory took the paper and pencil back to her room, and Luke returned to the water heater. A moment later Rory flew out of her room and jumped up the stool near the closet so she could point the flashlight for Luke. After a couple minutes, Lorelai quietly walked toward them, but Rory's sixth sense was working and she caught her. When she jumped off the stool, Lorelai cringed as it nearly came down on Luke, who was still stuck in the closet. Luke shrugged it off and told her that he had jury-rigged the heater, but she should get a new one pretty quick.

"I know a guy who owes me a favor," Luke said. "I can ask him where you can get a good price on one."

"Really?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah, give me a couple days and I'll get back to you." Luke said as he was packing up.

"Thanks," she smiled. "And thanks for explaining the Infield Fly Rule. Rory was going to drive me crazy with that one."

"No problem—that one took me a while to get too. I've got to get back to the diner, Cesar's probably swamped by now."

"Okay, thanks again." Lorelai said as he left. She never called him Duke again. Two days later he came back with an estimate on a new water heater. It was expensive, but Lorelai bit the bullet when Luke promised it was worth the price. Two weeks later, she was looking through a Lowes, trying to find a couple things for the inn, when she came across the exact model of the heater she had bought, and noticed that she had paid a hundred and five dollars less than advertised.

* * *

Number one-eighty-three on her list is when she and Rory returned from their trip to California. Luke gave them free donuts and told them he was glad that they had a good time. But shortly after that, her list got her in trouble with Rory. She had invited Luke to both the Christmas party and the New Year's get together. He had done so much for both her and Rory, but he was always so anti-social. Rory had asked her the other day if Luke had anyone special in his life. When she had joked back that he had them in his life, Rory shook her head. "No, mom. I mean, why is he alone? He's a nice guy. What happened to him to make him want to be by himself?" Lorelai didn't have an answer for that one, and it occurred to her that she also wondered why Luke was such a loner. So she took it upon herself to socialize him.

That's how she got him to go to the parties, but it turned out he didn't get to do much socializing. She kept him to herself during the Christmas party, and even though he didn't say much she was glad to once again have someone who would listen and offer a little advice here and there. And then, to top it all off, New Year's night she had gotten a little tipsy and ended up practically throwing herself at Luke. Luckily, he was very gentlemanly about everything. Even during the quasi-dance, he just put his hands around her waist and didn't try a thing. She actually had to tell him to loosen up, that it was okay to hold someone when they asked to be held. He relaxed a little, but she noticed that he sent a couple hard stares into the crowd. _Nosey busybodies._ She had thought—very briefly—of giving him a quick New Year's kiss. Harry and Sally had done it. _Thank God I didn't. Rory would've freaked._ Instead, she made him hug her goodnight—partly because he looked like he could use one, and partly because in all the time they'd known each other she couldn't remember ever hugging him before.

It wasn't until Rory asked if they were secretly dating that it hit her: how she had acted and the things she had said. She was so embarrassed, and felt terrible that her daughter saw her like that. And as she lay in bed that night Lorelai noticed a pattern: every so often, when she was lonely or he had done something for her, she couldn't shake the thought that it was because he had feelings for her. She wasn't stupid or deaf; she'd heard the rumors around town and had even caught a glance or two from Luke. And sometimes, she thought she had reciprocating feelings. He was, after all, the only man that she trusted. But as she lay awake in bed, she chalked her conflicted emotions up to loneliness or alcohol or just a bad day at work. They were good friends and as much as she denied it she relied on Luke; it was only natural for her to occasionally feel something. She'd read about it somewhere, feelings like this had something to do with being thrown together or always seeing each other. She resolved then and there that Luke was a good friend. End of story.

* * *

Stay tuned, voice your opinions, etc. etc. and etc. 


	5. Luke II

**Author's Note: **Good news: this is a double-shot posting. Unhappy news: these two chapters are not really that long. It seems that for me story chapters are like parabolic functions—if they're really long or really short then you can bet that it was difficult to write, and the 'average' length chapters come easy. Now that I've exhausted my mathematical knowledge…

One more thing—I've decided to bow to the reality of this story and finally admit that it is not possible for me to sustain an update pace of every seven days or so without sacrificing the quality of the story. There are more than a few unconnected events I have in mind, and fitting everything together is turning out to be a rather daunting task. Not to mention finals coming up… I want to update twice a month or so, which would give me about fourteen days to spit out a new chapter and polish it up with help from **robinpoppins**. After all, she's got her own life and is trying to keep me in line, so that's pretty much a full plate right there. So sorry; perhaps Christmas Break will provide enough time to get these puzzle pieces to fit together.

"**It's never enough to feel and say,**

**Throw my promises away.**

**Fairly serious could hardly say, **

**That I couldn't give my heart away."**

'**Heart Away,' The Gin Blossoms**

5. Luke

The night that Lorelai told him what had really happened between her and her parents, the pieces of the Lorelai puzzle came together for Luke. Granted, he would never understand everything about her, but what man could? _Like Dad always said, 'The man who understands women ain't born yet, and both his parents are dead.'_ He always laughed at that saying. But life made a whole lot more sense: why she was always stressed about her parents, why Rory's father was never brought up, and why she did everything herself.

He felt compelled to offer something from his past in return, so he gave her the outline, _the very barest outline_, of his life and argued his point about the tagline of that movie they had watched. He thought maybe that was why they were so different in how they interpreted that tagline; how they handled obstacles in life. While she went it alone he had always been taught to look out for family. He remembered when his father sat him down after his mom's funeral. He could still hear his father's words. _Family's all you've got son. If a guy can't take care of his family, then he's not a man. Things are going to be tough around here. But now is the time when we pull together, understand? We rely on each other._ The lesson had been pounded into his character: _family is the most important thing._ Luke knew Lorelai certainly felt that family was important—all he had to do was look at Rory—but when it came down to it, she wouldn't blink if she had to cut everyone else out of her life. She'd done it before and he had no doubt she could do it again. When the same situation faced Liz—a baby and a bum boyfriend—she left too. But Liz didn't have the independence that Lorelai had. So no matter what, Luke came through for his sister. He could never say that it was too much, because after both his parents died, Liz and Jess were all he had left. His Uncle Louie had left for Florida years ago and they rarely, if ever, spoke. It wasn't that they didn't like each other—they were family—it's just that Uncle Louie was a loner. He made it clear that he would be there if things went bad, but he didn't want weekly phone calls. And, like most masculine relationships, theirs crumbled without consistent contact.

Now this fundamental difference between Luke and Lorelai made much more sense.

…

When Lorelai invited him to the blitz week of Christmas and New Year's parties, he honestly didn't know why. Perhaps she felt sorry for him or did it as a little joke. _She could count it as community service_. It was just another thing that only Lorelai would do. So he accepted—how could he not with the double whammy of Lorelai and Rory pouting—and braced himself for the worst.

But it turned out that he dodged a bullet. Lorelai dragged him outside during the Christmas party, and she talked to him. They didn't really cover anything groundbreaking, but it felt good to spend the night laughing again. He hadn't done that since he was with Rachel. Come to think of it, he hadn't really done anything social since he was with Rachel. When Miss Patty saw him talking to Lorelai she did a double take and smiled. "Luke, dear, are you here for the party?" Lorelai laughed, "I had to lie to him about a busted pipe, but he's not getting away now." She put her hand on his shoulder and didn't let him out of her sight for the rest of the night.

Six days later she wouldn't let him out of arm's reach. Lorelai and Rory were the last in the diner and waited for him to close up—probably so he couldn't duck out at the last minute. She latched onto him as they walked down the icy sidewalk to the party, and Rory bounced along beside her. Once inside she teased him mercilessly about all the fuss other townsfolk made over the fact that he had actually come to any party, much less two parties in a row. But it was all in good fun so he didn't mind too much. What he did mind were all the stares he caught from others. Lorelai didn't seem to mind, but Luke let it get to him and ended the night early. Lorelai had been extremely flirtatious all night and Luke was worried about appearances, especially when he caught Rory eavesdropping on them more than once.

That week—that night especially—she was even more engaging than she normally was. And he liked it, a lot. He smiled some; let himself go a little and loosened up and it felt good. She was like no one else he'd ever met and when he tried to pinpoint what it was about her all he could come up with was that she was just so…Lorelai. _Jesus, man, get a-hold of yourself._ His conscience snapped out. _You think she's really that special? _But she was, at least to him. And although he was positive that she was completely unique, he had known one other woman like her. She reminded him of his mother—what he could remember, anyways. Even then, there was nothing concrete that he could name. It was her mannerisms; her little tics that made him draw the parallel between the two women. _God, now I'm turning into a complete head case. Freud would rise from the dead for the chance to analyze me._ And maybe that was part of the reason he was hesitant to show any feeling toward her, much less a wish to be with her. He felt uneasy, a little apprehensive, connecting his mother with thoughts of happiness. He had lost her so long ago—it was wrong that she couldn't be here still. That both his parents were gone. So, inevitably, when memories of his mother came to him in the course of a day, he felt loss. To experience anything else felt as if it were a betrayal to her memory. Moreover, he felt a deep connection with Lorelai, and it dawned on him how much he wanted her and Rory in his life.

He wondered sometimes if Lorelai knew how much she teased him. _Probably not,_ he thought. He'd become very good at controlling his emotions. He learned early in life that emotions can't get anything accomplished; only action does. And to act one needed a cool head. Besides, he had no respect for men—if you could even call them men—who wore their every emotion on their sleeves. For them every joy brought unending smiles; every little sadness brought heart-wrenching grief. It was all such a farce to him. _If you're a man, you need to have a backbone. If you really need to, express how you feel when you have a little privacy. Don't make a spectacle of yourself._

Which is why the New Year's dance was so hard for him. He was positive that she would know as soon as he took her in his arms how he felt about her. He wasn't afraid she would magically read his thoughts—he wasn't insane—but he was sure that she would sense something in the way he held her. Women, he knew, had the ability to pick up on those subtle hints. _And just what is it you're afraid she'll pick up on?_ His conscience was back again, chiding him for his foolish thoughts. 'Chimeras,' his mother had called them. Those deep desires that sounded absolutely idiotic if they were voiced out loud. His earlier thoughts were looped back to the similarity between Lorelai and his mother and he felt that same uneasiness again. Lorelai's teasing comments that night had hit much too close to home. During the party he found it increasingly hard to concentrate. She was distracting—in a good way—and he couldn't ignore the fact that she looked_ really_ good that night. So he put on his best air of indifference and annoyance in the hopes that it would mask how much he cared, and left as soon as he could.

All these thoughts, of course, came to him in bits and pieces. He could never sit to analyze his feelings—it just wasn't something he did. He knew he was not a great thinker—especially when he delved into emotions—and had learned to trust his instincts on such things. Giving it any more thought would just muddy what little clarity he had. So he compartmentalized, and became very good at it. His heart was divided into corridors for his various feelings, and he determined where each feeling should go and then placed it there. And the less he thought of an emotion the darker that corridor became. Consequently, grief and sadness were well-lit, as were anger and frustration. He had no trouble finding confusion and guilt either. Between losing his parents, Rachel leaving him, and the disaster that was his sister, most of his energy was taken up. But when Lorelai and Rory entered his life the corridor for happiness became just a little brighter. But he knew enough to separate happiness from love—at least in the case of Lorelai—so that first day they met, after she had left and he regained his senses, he put love in a separate corridor. And it became very dark.

The day after the party Rory came in alone and asked if Luke could save some pancakes for Lorelai. She would be in soon, but she was still a little tired from the night before. _Couldn't possibly have been all the punch she drank,_ he thought sarcastically. When Lorelai did make it to the diner, she sat down at a middle table and didn't lift her head until Luke set a coffee mug down next to her. She looked up and smiled a little. "Thanks."

"Don't get used to it." Luke poured without looking at her.

"Do you have pancakes?"

"Rory told me to set some aside. I'll bring 'em out in a couple minutes." Luke glanced at her and moved off in the direction of the kitchen.

When he came back to her table he set down a plate of pancakes, a large glass of water, and a couple aspirins.

Lorelai chuckled a little. "Very funny," she took a bite of her breakfast. "But I've already taken five this morning."

"Good God!"

"I had a Marilyn moment—couldn't remember how many I'd taken."

Luke pocketed the aspirins. "Drink the water then. You look terrible."

"My God you have a way with words." Lorelai commented as she took another bite.

"You know what I mean. You look tired and crabby and hung-over." Luke said.

"I _am_ tired and crabby and hung-over."

"All the more reason to drink."

Lorelai nudged her mug so that Luke would refill it, but he shook his head. "Na-ah, finish your water and I'll pour you some coffee."

Lorelai made a face and took a large sip from her glass as Luke filled her coffee mug. "Listen," she began. "I'm sorry, about last night. I didn't mean to embarrass you."

"Don't worry about it…"

"Rory informed me that I was a little...overzealous around you. I think 'clingy' was the exact word she used."

"You did come off as a bit possessive." Luke said.

"I'm sorry."

"Alright," Luke picked the coffee pot up from the table. "Still, it was nice of you to invite me…" he trailed off.

"But?" Lorelai prodded.

"…Parties and festivals aren't really my thing." Luke finished. "But I had a good time for the most part. Just…don't expect me to do that again."

"Duly noted," Lorelai answered, and Luke left to check on other customers.

So she didn't ask him to go to anymore parties or festivals. She teased him about his 'bah-humbug' attitude and he ranted about how pointless and stupid they all were. Life found a happy balance and neither one was inclined to change it.


	6. Rory II

"**He's a lightning flash, he'll make the dash**

**From one coast to the other.**

**To stop a crime or lend a dime**

**Or help his aging mother."**

'**Captain America,' Jimmy Buffett**

6. Rory

If she thinks back to when her mother broke her leg, Rory thought her mom was going to lose her mind. Six weeks in a cast, limited mobility, a two-story house and no domestic skills whatsoever; how would Lorelai Gilmore survive? Thankfully, the townspeople helped out wherever they could. Babette stayed with the girls at the house and Morey ran errands to get whatever essentials were currently nearing critical lows. Miss Patty and Sookie were in charge of getting work materials and food to her while she was under this house-arrest.

And Luke pitched in wherever he could. When Babette drove them all home from the hospital Morey met them on the front porch with a large brown bag containing cheeseburgers, fries, and a whole pie, along with a couple to-go cups of coffee. When Rory asked Luke about it the next morning at breakfast, Luke shook his head and said something about trying to head-off the inevitable coffee needs, and he just wanted to help out a little that night because he was pretty sure dinner would be forgotten in the chaos until it was too late to get any decent food.

For the next few weeks, Lorelai worked from home, if she was able to work at all. She didn't get out of the house much, and every time Rory came in from school she heard a movie on the television. But Babette came by when she left for school in the mornings to check up on Lorelai and discuss the latest gossip. She knew Luke came by—she would find take-out cups and boxes every few days—but she didn't know if he ever stayed to talk or if Lorelai just called him to demand a caffeine fix. Rory suspected that Lorelai called him to check up on her, because Luke had begun to ask subtle questions about how her day was going and who she had talked to at school. Leave it to her mother to recruit the most anti-social man in town to be her source for all the goings-on. But the diner was a central mark in town, which meant he probably knew a lot more about people than he let on. And he must have satisfied Lorelai's curiosity, or at least confirmed what Rory told her.

Two weeks before her mom's cast was due to come off, Rory was finishing her breakfast at the counter and talking to Luke as he rushed back and forth behind the counter. "So what's going on today?" Luke asked her as he reset the coffee machine.

"Nothing much," Rory replied between bites. "It's kind of a slow week school-wise."

"That must be nice." Luke said.

"Well, sorta." Rory wrinkled her brows a little. "It probably means that I'll end up with three or four major projects all due on the same day in a couple weeks."

"Ah, I always hated those big projects."

Rory smiled at that. "It's not that bad…"

"Maybe not for you," Luke shot back.

"You really didn't like them?" Rory asked.

"I didn't like school as much as you do." Luke said. "I think I have my junior high gym teacher to thank for that one."

"Why?"

"He was _mean_. It was all boys in the class, so he made us play a game called murder-ball. It's like dodge-ball, but we had these hard plastic balls that stung when you got hit."

"Ow!"

"Yeah." Luke agreed.

"I'm glad I don't have to do that. Our gym class is basically a study-hall." Rory emptied her coffee mug and stood up. "Well, I'll see you later, Luke." She set some money by her plate and turned to leave. She saw Lorelai on crutches hobbling towards the diner door. "Oh, no."

"What?" Luke turned at her comment, but he followed Rory's gaze out the window. "You've _got _to be kidding me." He sounded exasperated.

"I don't think so." Rory answered.

Luke went by her and opened the door as Lorelai tried to make it up the steps. "What are you doing—" She stumbled on the last step and he caught her elbow to steady her.

"Ooh, thanks. That might've ended badly." Lorelai regained her balance and looked up at Rory. "Hello daughter."

"Hello," Rory smiled. "How did you get out of the house?"

Lorelai took a seat on the stool near the till and leaned her crutches against the counter. "Ugh, I just couldn't take it anymore. I was locked in that house and if I heard one more story about Babette's gnomes I'd go crazy."

"As opposed to how normal you are now." Luke commented without thinking.

Lorelai looked up in surprise and Rory laughed behind her. "Mean! How can you make fun of me? I'm like little Timmy, but much cuter."

"Didn't Timmy have one leg that was shorter than the other?" Luke asked.

"I…I can't remember. I thought it was a club-foot or something like that." Lorelai waved her hand. "But that doesn't matter. I went through a lot just to get here this morning; to see your scowling face and drink your coffee and eat your pancakes. I demand some service, and I demand that it comes without the sarcasm, at least until I get some caffeine in me."

Luke poured her a mug of coffee. "You want bacon with the pancakes?"

"Of course."

"Coming right up," Luke disappeared into the kitchen

"Well," Rory spoke up again. "I've got to get to class."

"You don't want to play a little hooky and keep your old mom company?"

"Sorry, can't. The school really frowns upon truancy."

"Fine, I'll see you at home then." Lorelai rested with her elbows propped up on the counter and her head in her hands.

As Rory opened the door she heard her mom perk up. "Oh, Luke! Did you see Good Morning America? They had this special about…"

…

The years melded together and before she knew it, she was a freshman in high school. It was exciting and scary and she almost screamed every time she thought about it. _I'm in high school!_ No matter how many times it crossed her mind, it still sounded cool. She and Lane had four classes together and were inseparable. One day Lane came running up to her in the hallway between classes. "Oh my God! Rory, Katie just showed me this picture in the trophy case—you have to see it! Meet me at my locker after school."

So when the final bell rang—they didn't have their last two classes together—Rory stood by Lane's locker until she arrived, and then followed her to the front of the school. About ten feet from the case, she made Rory close her eyes. "Lane," she was laughing now. "What's going on?"

"Look at _this_!" Lane tapped her shoulder and Rory opened her eyes to see a very young Luke Danes enshrined among the Minuteman Immortals of Stars Hollow High. The words below his picture read _'Butch' Danes, State Champion_. He was crouched on the track in the ready position. There was another picture to the right—a headshot with the same serious look that he wore nearly every time she saw him. Next to the track trophies stood a few baseball trophies as well. "Oh. My. God!" Rory laughed in disbelief. "Is this really Luke?"

"Yeah, Katie was pointing out some lame-o plaque they put in for her boyfriend and then she pointed this out. Apparently Luke was quite the athlete, and it's very prestigious to have something next to his spot in the case. I asked if it was the same Luke that runs the diner, and she just looked at me like I was stupid." Lane laughed a little. "Like I should know about some high school sports event that happened before I was born. My mom wasn't even in this country yet."

"This is _so _great!" Rory was still looking at the pictures.

"When are you going to tell your mom? I want to see her reaction." Lane said, and then jumped a little. "Oh, and when she tells Luke. That'll be _classic_."

"We can't tell her about this." Rory laughed.

"Why not? I want to see the steam pour outa Luke's ears."

"That's why. He'll throw Mom out and we'll never be able to eat there again. I don't want to be banned from the diner."

"Oh, come on. He won't ban you two; everyone knows he likes your mom…"

"Lane," Rory began.

"Okay, I'm sorry." Lane apologized.

"It's fine. Just, don't tell Mom about this. She'll torture him and then when he finally kicks her out, she'll be crabby all week until she apologizes and he let's her back in."

"You're no fun at all." Lane smiled.

"You wouldn't have to deal with a Lorelai who didn't get a good cup of coffee." Rory shot back.

"Fine," Lane conceded. "But if she finds out, you'll have to tell me everything…" From then on, whenever there was an event that Lorelai had to attend at school, Rory would shield the trophies as they walked by or tell her to come in a side entrance.


	7. Lorelai III

**A quick A/N: **Yes, I am writing. No, it's not as easy as I thought it would be. But life is full of disappointments so I'm used to that.

**To avesnovuelan: **If you're still reading, I did some more digging and finally came up with the correct lyrics and translation for the quote in the second chapter. It is:

Lyrics: Amor a primeira vista  
Voce nao, quer que o insista  
Amor a primeira vista  
Reacao quimica (quimica) quimica Language: 

_Portuguese _

Translation:

Love at first sight  
I don't proclaim, I must insist  
Love at first sight  
Chemical reaction (chemistry)

**To DanceBurgerBoy21: **Glad you like the story, but I can't help but think there's something more to your last comment ("what makes it better is that a guy wrote it") I just get the feeling you're...surprised that I'm a man, no?

**To Severien: **I guess since you're from Belgium I can forgive the fact that you don't know Jimmy Buffett. I couldn't begin to describe his music--he is truely one-of-a-kind. If you want to listen to him, then I would try to listen to his internet radio station. Since won't allow me to write the address, the easiest way to find it is to go to Google for the search engine and type in "radio margaritaville" The website has a link for you to listen over the internet. It plays more than just Jimmy, but every day starting at noon eastern U.S. time it plays an hour of Jimmy's music. Plus it'll play concerts and the site has links to others full of Buffett knowledge. By the way, love your fries.

* * *

**"Until I fall away,  
I won't keep you waiting long.  
Until I fall away,  
I don't know what to do anymore."  
'Until I Fall Away,' Gin Blossoms**

7. Lorelai

When she thinks about it, she knows she never really thanked Luke for all he did when she broke her leg. Truth be told, she could probably make a whole new list about him just from those six weeks. She'd called him when she got back from the hospital to thank him for sending dinner over, but she could hear the noise in the background and knew that the diner was busy. She barely got in a few words before there was a crash and she heard Luke draw in a breath of frustration. He wished her well and said he had to go, and as he was hanging up Lorelai could feel the irritation as she heard him say, "Taylor, I _swear to God_…" before the line went dead.

Really, it was frustrating to her. Not just that particular incident, but the fact that he tended to shrug off any thanks in general. He was always saying things like 'don't mention it' or 'I don't mind' or—her personal favorite—'it's no big deal.' Because when he said that it usually was a big deal. She never got to genuinely thank him, face to face, for anything.

* * *

He came over two days later with a danish and a cup of coffee. Babette was still over, and Lorelai could see that it made Luke a little uncomfortable. He held up the danish and the cup and stumbled over his words, "I just thought, you know, God forbid you miss Danish Day." He smiled a little at that. "And what's a danish without coffee?" He handed the pastry over to her and set the cup down on the coffee table. "So, how're you doing?"

"Oh, better," Lorelai answered, acutely aware that Babette was sitting in the recliner just a few feet away, listening to their conversation.

"Good," Luke said, and she watched as he seemed frustrated at his lack of conversational ability. "Just don't…" he hesitated, his eyes betraying the little debate going on in his mind over what to say next. "…be running all over town. If you need anything let me know. It's no big deal." He shuffled his feet as he spoke, and Lorelai wondered what he had originally intended to say.

"Sure, thanks Luke." She took a sip from her to-go cup and smiled. "I wouldn't mind if you brought some coffee tomorrow."

"I'll see what I can do." Luke paused a moment and then jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "I need to get going. I'm glad you're doing better." He was out the door before she could say anything else.

Lorelai looked over to Babette, who was still watching the door. "Sometimes I don't know how you can ignore that, baby." She shook her head and looked back at Lorelai. "Well, I've got to get home; Morey's probably starving by now. I promised I'd make him an omelet for breakfast. See ya later, sugar." She was gone in a flash, yelling a warning to Morey as she crossed the yard, and suddenly Lorelai was all alone and wondering what Babette had been talking about. She sipped her coffee and picked up some paperwork on the coffee table to read over during her breakfast.

The next day about midmorning she heard a knock at the front door. She couldn't get up from the kitchen table at the moment—she was surrounded by payroll stubs—so she told whoever it was to just come on in since the door was open. She looked up in surprise when she heard Luke's heavy footsteps. "Oh, hey. What are you doing here?" When Luke held up a coffee cup, Lorelai laughed out loud. "You didn't have to bring me coffee. I was just joking yesterday."

"Good, because I wasn't going to just start giving you coffee whenever you feel like you need a caffeine jolt." Luke set the cup down in front of her.

"I thought you were Babette until I heard your boots on the floor. She told me she was going to bring by lunch sometime soon." Lorelai told him since she didn't know what else to say at the moment.

"What's on the menu today?" Luke asked.

"I don't know…" Lorelai made a small pout. "But I'm pretty sure it's not a burger and fries. Yesterday it was something from Al's—I have no idea what it was supposed to be. All I know is that it stunk to high heaven."

"Well, it is the Tour of India this week." Luke told her.

"Bleh."

"I could, uh, bring you something, if you want a change of pace or something like that."

"Really?" Lorelai asked hopefully.

"Well, not every day, you know, but every couple days or something. If you want; we can figure something out."

He was stumbling over his words again. _He's so cute when he gets a little nervous._ Lorelai smiled to herself. "Sure, _something_ from the diner would be great." She teased him.

"I think this is the most inane conversation I've had all week." Luke grumbled.

"_Something_ like that." Lorelai grinned.

"Okay, I get it." Luke held his hands up. "Do you want me to bring you someth, err, lunch or not."

"Yes." Lorelai answered.

"What do you want?"

"Oh, I don't know." She paused a moment for dramatic effect. "Bring me _something_ like a burger and fries."

"Oh my God, that horse is dead."

Lorelai laughed. "I know—I just can't let it go. Can you bring me someth, err, lunch today?" This time she stumbled over her words when she caught his eyebrows rising at her choice of phrase. _Okay, not so cute when I'm the one stuttering._

"I can come by a little after noon." Luke offered.

"Sounds good," Lorelai agreed.

"Okay, I'll see you then." Luke gave a little half-smile and then went back to the diner.

* * *

She left the front door slightly ajar as she worked, and a couple hours later she heard a double-tap on the wooden frame and Luke call out "Lunch is served," as he made his way to the kitchen.

And before she could stop herself, Lorelai replied, "Something smells great," and cringed as soon as she said it. When she didn't hear anything she turned in her seat to see Luke staring at her, his eyebrows knit in a look that was stuck between frustrated and amused.

"You really can't be left by yourself, can you?" Luke half asked, half stated.

"Adult supervision required." Lorelai grinned at him.

Luke let out a small chuckle as he set the bag down and pulled the food out for her. "Okay: burger, fries, desert, and coffee. Think you're set?"

"Yes." Lorelai answered, and then she looked up at him. "Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it." Luke folded the paper bag as he answered.

"No, I mean," Lorelai paused a moment. "Thanks for everything. All your help and free coffee and pie. I didn't even pay you yet for the dinner Morey dropped off."

"Don't worry; it's all on your tab." Luke told her.

"That must be a _really_ big tab."

"Well, it's not small."

Lorelai smiled wide. "Dirty!"

"Jeez." Luke grumbled.

Lorelai laughed, and then became serious. "Honestly Luke, I don't want you to think I'm just taking advantage of you."

"I know, but thanks for telling me." He was quiet a moment before asking, "So, Rory tells me you broke your leg at a yoga class?"

"Oh, it's a long story." Lorelai tried to hide her embarrassment.

Luke pulled out a seat at the table. "I'm up for a laugh."

"You don't have to get right back to the diner?"

"Cesar's got it covered. I can entertain you for a few moments." And before she could open her mouth he cut her off. "Dirty, I know. Just get on with the story."

"Well, this girl next to me, she was like a super-yogi or something…"

"Really," Luke deadpanned.

"Really! She could do all the crazy animal poses like starfish and dogs and whatever else there are. And I know it's not a competition, but she was all like, 'it's about freeing your mind' and 'push your boundaries' and it was getting to me. Because the class was supposed to be relaxing, but how could I relax with this yogi-chick yapping away right next to me." She saw him stifle a laugh at that comment. "Don't think I didn't see that." She warned.

"What?" He sounded innocent.

"That little chuckle at what I said." She tried to look at him sternly.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He face was completely serious, and it made Lorelai's lips turn up in the slightest of smiles. And as soon as he saw this, Luke burst into laughter.

"What?" Lorelai asked, a little aggravated

"It's just…I never thought I'd hear you…you of all people, complain about people talking too much." Luke got out between his laughs.

"Point taken," Lorelai admitted as Luke quieted down.

"Okay, go on." Luke waved his right hand a little. "The yogi-chick was yapping away…"

Lorelai picked up her story. "Anyways, she wouldn't stop, and so when time was called and we were told to go on to the next pose, I was determined to match her. It was called the 'fir tree' or some stupid thing like that. But it looked like everyone was trying to do a handstand in their own lap." She chuckled a little. "So I…twisted around…" Her arms waved to help her demonstrate the move, and Luke had to duck a swinging hand. "…and then crossed my legs Indian-style, and I was almost there, but I looked over at this rather, uh, large woman, trying to balance. She was huffing and puffing, and it was just so funny that I kinda lost my concentration and tumbled over and then…" she hit the table lightly, "Bam went my leg and all I remember was thinking that yoga wasn't supposed to hurt." She smiled a little. "But I knocked over the yogi-chick before she could finish the pose and start talking. So I guess I came out even."

"A broken leg is a fair trade to keep her from talking?"

"You have no idea, Luke. She was really annoying and just wouldn't stop talking. She went on and on and on."

"I can only imagine…" Luke trailed off as he looked at her.

"What?" Then it dawned on her and she felt a little hurt. "Hey, you know what? It's time for you to leave." She said in mock anger. "I'm sharing a _traumatic experience_ and you think it's the perfect time to make fun of me."

"I'm not making fun of you…" Luke began with a small smile.

"Yes you are. You think I'm annoying and…"

Luke cut her off. "You're not annoying." She looked him in the eye. "You're just a little overdramatic sometimes." He finished lightly.

"I don't want to be anyone's charity case." Lorelai huffed, but her indignation was melting.

"Until that cast comes off you're _everyone's_ charity case." Luke pointed out. "You know how the town is. They're already at you're beck and call, now you just have an excuse to take advantage of it." He smiled. "May as well live it up."

"You don't have to be doing this." Lorelai told him. "I know you hate to be involved in all the crazy town things."

"I don't mind." Luke tapped his fingers on the table quickly as he spoke.

Lorelai could tell he meant it. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." Then Luke pointed at her lunch. "How's lunch?"

She'd forgotten about the food. _I forgot about the food?_ She'd been engrossed in telling the story to Luke. She popped a fry in her mouth. "Perfect, as always."

"Good." Luke looked around the room.

"So did Rory and Lane stop by for breakfast?"

"Yeah," Luke said. "They were talking about hiding in Lane's closet for a few hours after school. It was something about Jim Morrison and hiding from Lane's mom."

"Yeah, Mamma Kim can be a little up-tight… Listen," And then Lorelai felt a little uncomfortable even asking this. "I know this is going to sound stupid, but could I ask you a big favor?"

"Sure."

"Could you just, I don't know, keep an eye on Rory? I mean just for a little while, if it's not too much trouble." Lorelai finished quickly.

Luke looked her in the eye a moment, "Of course."

"I know that's totally un-cool to ask and it goes against getting involved in things, but, I won't be able to go places for a while and I worry about her sometimes even though we live in Stars Hollow. She's so trusting with people and I don't want her to be taken away by a seedy trucker or run off with some Evel Knievel on a moto-cross bike." She knew was starting to sound like a crazy person and she didn't know why, maybe the painkillers were getting to her, but she did worry about Rory.

Luke chuckled a little and said, "I don't think she'll run off with a biker, she wouldn't be able to take all her books with."

Lorelai had to laugh at that. "Well, you know what I mean."

"Yeah," Luke answered.

"You don't have to be like Mamma Kim." Lorelai told him with a smile. "And you'll have to be smooth about it or she'll figure out what's going on. I swear, she'll make a great reporter. Nothing gets by that radar of hers." She looked him in the eye and mocked an interrogator's expression. "You can be smooth, can't you?"

"As ice," Luke replied.

"What?"

"Smooth as ice," Luke explained.

"Oh, that was so corny." Lorelai smiled.

"You asked for smooth, not cool." Luke told her.

"How can you be smooth and not be cool?"

"I can be cool too, you just didn't ask for it." His lips turned up.

"_You_ can be cool?" She let her surprise show.

"You have no idea, baby." His eyebrows went up ever so slightly as he looked her in the eye with a smile; and dang, she realized he was cool.

It took her a moment to recover from the sight and she didn't quite know what to say next. "Well, okay then." She tapped the table twice. "Just, you know, ask how her day went or what's going on. You know; things like that." She tapped the table once more.

Luke tapped the table in response. "_You know_, I think I got it."

"Very funny," Lorelai blushed a little.

"You deserved it." Luke smiled.

"Yeah," Lorelai admitted. Then she sat straight up with a big smile. "Ooh, since I now know you're Joe Cool, you could be my secret link to the town. Just keep playing the disgruntled diner owner, and report in to me on all the happenings."

"No." And in a flash he was back to regular Luke.

"Why not? It'll be fun."

"Babette lives right next to you. Just get the gossip from her." Luke reasoned.

"But she and Miss Patty are always so biased, and they always embellish everything until you don't know what's true and what's just been made up. I want _unbiased_ gossip." Lorelai explained.

"It's gossip." Luke wrinkled his brow. "By definition it's biased."

"Come on, I bet you hear all kinds of juicy details in that diner. All those conversations, all those people."

"I don't hear anymore than I can help. I try not to eavesdrop, customers don't like it." Luke told her.

"How about I just ask you what's been going on? That won't be eavesdropping."

"I'm not going to be your secret agent link."

"Luuuke!" She almost whined.

Luke raised an eyebrow at her and for a moment she felt silly. Then he said, "You can ask me about what's been going on, but I won't give you any gossip." And she couldn't help but smile at that.

* * *

He ended up coming over every three or four days and would stay for about half an hour, sometimes a little more. She'd ask about Rory and Lane, or try to get his version of some outrageous tale Babette had told her. She was glad for the company and that he would leave that diner, if only for a little while. He really did need to get out more. And Babette was nice, but Lorelai really would've lost her mind if she didn't see anyone else. When she broke out of the house and showed up at Luke's one morning, she thought he was going to lose his mind. But he humored her and listened to her stories in between customers, and when she wanted to go home he told her he would drive her back. But Lorelai refused to get a ride; she wanted to stretch her legs after being cooped up for so many weeks. So Luke gave an exasperated sigh, and insisted he'd walk her home. When they finally got there he helped her up the steps and got her inside. He left a to-go cup with her and said he had to get back pretty quick since the lunch crowd would be there pretty soon. And then he was gone.

* * *

**Eight is being proofed as you read, so it looks like I'm on target for updates this month. Finally, a deadline I can make...**

**As I told Robbinpoppins, I'm inordinately proud of the 'unbiased gossip' bit. Anyone agree?**


	8. Luke and Lorelai

**A/N: **I think I gave my beta a bit of a heart attack because I sent her three chapters at once since I'd finally been able to get something on paper. Plus, she finally admitted she had more to do than just hold my hand as I try to navigate this winding road. But she made time to help me out and once again proved how important she is. So this update goes out to her more than anyone else. This chapter is very long, so it is being uploaded separately. Chapters nine and ten complement each other and are much more manageable in length, so they will both be uploaded at the same time. Or as it's known in bar-speak, they'll be a double shot.

**Just a little thought…**

**Danceburgerboy21: **Cousins, eh? How _you _doin'?

**On to the writing…** Once again, thanks to Robbinpoppins.

"**Down to the Banana Republics,  
Down to the tropical sun.  
Go the expatriated Americans,  
Hoping to find some fun."  
'Banana Republics,' Jimmy Buffett**

8. Luke and Lorelai

When her cast finally came off, Lorelai went back to her light-speed life. She zipped into the diner for coffee and then disappeared until dinnertime, when she was a little slower but just as crazy. If she came by for lunch, she would rapid-fire questions at him about everything from current events to the proper materials for building a bookcase for Rory. "It's just something I've always wondered," She told him when he asked her why she wanted to know about bookcases.

For him there are a number of events that seem to blur together in quick succession, and he hates that he can't remember exactly when or in what order they happened. He remembers a cold, rainy day in November when Lorelai came in, dripping water everywhere and slamming the door behind her. The diner was full of people waiting for lunch, and she squeezed by a few standing customers and took a seat right next to the register. He went around filling the coffee cups and taking the orders of those who were waiting before her. He watched out of the corner of his eye as she went from impatient to irritated when he didn't come to her right away. Finally, after he had turned in the orders and wrung up a waiting customer, he turned to her. "What can I get you?" he asked.

"Some service would be nice." She bit out.

"What?"

"I've been here for ten minutes, Luke." Lorelai glared at him.

"You've been here for two minutes," Luke corrected her. "And in case you haven't noticed I'm pretty busy today."

"I can't see why, I don't think you've done more than fill a couple coffee cups and take money since I got here."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Luke barked at her defensively.

"Nothing," Lorelai stood up "I'll just try Weston's. Maybe there I can actually get a cup of coffee." She stood up and started for the door.

"Lorelai!" Luke called.

"I'll see you later, maybe when you're not so busy." She snapped out over her shoulder.

He'd had enough of her petty little attitude by now. "Lorelai!" He growled out in a low and intimidating voice

She froze automatically at his tone. "Come here and sit down." He commanded, and she found herself obeying out of instinct. Her feet carried her back to the stool and she fell onto it before looking up to meet his eyes.

He saw then what was going on. Her pink slicker was dripping water on the floor in an irregular circle and her face was sad, not angry. Her shoulders slouched and he could _feel_ that she wasn't as happy as she usually was. "Lorelai," he started in a much softer voice. "What's the matter?"

She blinked and he realized that the rain had covered the tears she must have cried earlier. "I'm sorry, I'm not mad at you." She wiped her wet hair from in front of her eyes. "I've just had a really rough day and it's only noon." She gave a sorrowful smile. "I just need some coffee."

Luke had anticipated her request and set a full cup down for her. "Lorelai," he tried again. "You can talk to me, you know."

She felt transparent and embarrassed at her outburst. Luke wasn't the one she was mad at; she wasn't mad at all. After a moment she gathered herself and spoke. "Mia's leaving." She told him.

"Mia's leaving?" Luke asked, and she watched as he processed this information. "Well, how long is she going to be gone for?"

"She's moving. To California." Lorelai clarified.

"Oh," that took the wind out of Luke's sails. He didn't know what he was expecting, but this information came straight out of left field. "Did she tell you when?" He asked.

"Soon, I think in the next couple weeks." Lorelai answered. "I mean, she has been talking about it for a while and I thought I was prepared, but now…" Lorelai shook her head once. "I don't think so." Luke didn't even know Mia was planning on moving, and his surprise must have been obvious to Lorelai because after a moment she said, "I'm going to assume you didn't know about this either."

"No," was all Luke could say.

"It's just that…" Lorelai thought a moment before continuing. "Mia is so much a part of my life." She smiled sadly and looked at Luke. "You know that; I'm sure she means just as much to you as she does to me. She told me she was really going to miss you and me and Rory."

"I'm sure," Luke replied in a slightly skeptical tone. "Is Mia at the inn today?"

"Oh, she'll be there until this evening." Lorelai answered. "She said something about closing the deal with her real estate agent tonight, but you know, California is like four hours behind our time." She looked at her watch and sighed. "I got to get back, could I get a cup to go?"

"Aren't you going to get anything to eat?" Luke handed her a cup.

"I don't have the time," Lorelai told him.

"Well then just order something and I can bring it by." Luke offered.

Lorelai laughed a little and waved a hand around the diner. "You're packed."

"If I don't get out of here for at least a couple minutes I'm going to lose my mind. At least this way I have an excuse." Luke told her.

Lorelai smiled. "Then a burger would be really good." She stood up and handed him the money. "I'll see you soon?"

"You bet." Luke told her as he picked up the coffee pot and began to make another round. Lorelai left and he got back to the register and cashed out a few more customers before cooking her meal. He took his time, mulling over the new information Lorelai had given him. Mia was moving! It had never even crossed his mind; she seemed happy, and Lorelai and Rory were her obvious favorites in this world. He was angry and a little hurt by the turn of events. It dawned on him that this wasn't a spontaneous move, but a planned decision on Mia's part, and she didn't tell him a thing about it. Didn't ask for his help packing up, didn't show him pictures of her new home, and didn't even tell him she was thinking about moving. He wondered briefly if she would have told him at all about the move, or if she would have just come by the night before to tell him she'd miss him and to keep his head on straight. He'd had too many of those good-byes already, and they always left a bitter taste in his mouth. He finished preparing Lorelai's meal and closed the lid to the carry-out box forcefully, cracking the Styrofoam and deforming the box. He glanced down and noticed that his hands were gripping the flimsy box much too tightly, and relaxed a little. After a quick inspection, he decided that the box was fine—a little dented but still usable. He held it carefully as he walked out the door in the direction of the Independence Inn.

He walked to the inn, if only to give himself time to let the anger cool into confusion. The rain had moved on, leaving only a drizzle that swirled in the cold east wind. By the time he made it up the front steps he was coated in a thin film of moisture and that seething feeling had left his gut, for the most part anyways. Lorelai was at the front desk and she met him with a smile, taking the container from his hands before he had a chance to tell her that the Styrofoam was cracked. It slipped a little and they both caught it at the same time, his hands closing over hers to keep the box from falling to the ground.

"Oh, my, what happened to Harry?" Lorelai asked, her voice full of concern.

"Harry?" Luke asked in confusion.

"Harry the hamburger box." She explained.

"Just a little crack, he'll be fine." Luke told her, and then mentally chided himself for referring to the box as a 'he.'

"Well thank God for that." Lorelai said, and he let go of her hands as she moved from behind the desk and towards the restaurant tables in the dining room. "So, thanks again for bringing this by." She told him as she sat down, motioning for him to sit down as well.

Luke shook his head no, "I've got to get back. The rain's stopped for now and I don't know how long my luck will hold."

"You didn't bring an umbrella?"

"I was too busy making sure I didn't drop your lunch."

"You want to borrow my raincoat?" she asked with a gleam in her eyes.

"That's…really…more than okay." Luke held up his hands. "I won't melt—I'm not made of sugar."

"I don't know…" Lorelai answered apprehensively. Luke just glared at her and she sighed a long sigh. "Oh, okay. I guess I'll see you later." She smiled and ate a fry. "Hope you make it back."

"Yeah," Luke answered as he left the dining room. But instead of going out the front door he went to Mia's office. The door was open and he peeked his head inside to see if she was present. He must have made some sort of noise, because Mia looked up and smiled in surprise. "Lucas, what are you doing here?" she asked happily.

"You're moving to California?" He asked crossly as he entered the room.

Mia's face fell and she looked away a moment before saying, "Please don't be upset about this, Lucas."

"Upset?" Luke could barely control the tone of his voice. "I would have had to know about it to be upset. You didn't even tell me, I found out from Lorelai—who, by the way—yelled at me because _she_ was upset by your moving. I'm not upset, I'm _angry_ that I found out this way." Luke finished.

"Luke, I know this may shock you, but I'm not as young as I once was. I don't like these cold New England winters anymore. California has a better climate for someone like me." Mia explained. "The inn is in capable hands now, and I need to move on. I have family on the west coast that I haven't seen for years, and I want to visit them now to make up for a little lost time."

Luke didn't know what to say, he couldn't argue with that and he knew she wouldn't change her mind. He just couldn't get past his initial point. "But you didn't even tell me you were thinking about it." He said. "I would've liked to have known you were going to move."

"I've hinted for years. How many times did I say that California would be a nice place to live?" Mia asked gently.

"Yeah, you said that the same way I said it would be nice to live in the Rockies or to be a deckhand on a sailboat in the Caribbean. It was just something that would be nice to dream about, or only do for a little while. I was never serious, and you never sounded serious either."

"Well, now I am." Mia sighed. "Listen, Lucas, I know this is hard for you. But you're not going to be alone just because I'm gone. Bud and Maizie are still here, and you've got the town."

"That last part's not really a comfort." Luke snorted.

Mia smiled a little. "Be that as it may, my place is no longer here." She looked away a moment before continuing. "I know this is going to be hard for you—it'll be hard for me—but I won't leave without saying goodbye, okay?"

Luke took a deep breath. "Okay," he agreed.

"Well," Mia covered a sniffle and then changed the subject. "What were you doing here anyways?"

"Oh, uh, Lorelai needed lunch." Luke replied.

Mia smiled and noted the time on the wall clock. "You probably need to get back don't you? You're usually packed this time of day."

"Yeah, I can't afford to have my help mutiny on me." Luke thought aloud.

"I'll come by later, okay?" Mia offered.

"Okay," Luke agreed. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye." Mia said.

Luke made it back to the diner, and later, after Mia came in and talked to him about her decision, he felt a little better. He helped her with moving out, and she gave him a proper goodbye. And that was really all he could ask for.

* * *

Though neither one talks about it, both Luke and Lorelai remember a number of times when they met at the lake. They never met at the lake alone. Some third party—usually Rory—was always there as a chaperone, and because of this they couldn't do much more than make nervous small talk and feel awkward or self-conscious. Almost always, Luke was the one swimming, which had surprised Lorelai at first, but she saw that he was actually a very good swimmer; and she tried not to see how good he looked in just a pair of forest green canvas UDT shorts that rode low on his hips and only reached down to a few inches above his knees. She had noticed the tattoo on his arm and was immediately intrigued with it. What did it mean? Why did he get it? When did he get it? Rory seemed to accept it without a second thought, but Lorelai found herself unable to find it so normal for him. Of course, when she asked about it, he didn't answer a single question directly. In fact, the only information he eventually gave away was that he had gotten it when he was young, and that he wasn't drunk when he did it.

Luke, for his part, feigned confidence and tried not to get caught staring at her. He couldn't help it; if they met at the lake she was always wearing a light, thin top and a frilly skirt or short shorts that showed her curves in the slightest breeze. Occasionally, it was just a bikini top—sometimes with and sometimes without an undone button-up shirt—and a sarong that hugged her hips and made it impossible to concentrate on any conversation. She always wore something bright or colorful, and had towels with absurd printings of tropical jungles or animals and flowers. She would carry a backpack that held extra suntan oil, towels, shoes, snacks and drinks, and just about anything else she could imagine was necessary. He carried nothing more than a sand-brown towel and a pair of leather sandals, and occasionally a water bottle if he was out swimming laps for more than an hour.

If pressed, they can both recall—with embarrassed smiles and tinglings in their stomachs—the time that everyone was at the lake. And when they say everyone they do mean everyone. It was a summer festival, held from midmorning to sundown on a cloudless day in the middle of the hottest month of the year. It seemed as if the entire town turned out to the small meadow along the southern and eastern shore of the lake—dragging coolers full of drinks and cold-cut sandwiches or various junk and finger foods, and grills for hot dogs and hamburgers. All the trimmings and toppings were spread out on large wooden fold-out tables in a pot luck style. It was an official BYOB event, with soft drinks and juice and, unofficially, beer for the adults. There were a few canopies set up to provide shelter from the sun, but most of the shade was provided by trees on the edge of the meadow. Nearby, the bridge—which ran east to west across the lake—was in such a state of disrepair that a large section of the middle span was missing. Instead, some inventive teenagers had rearranged the scaffolding being used to repair the bridge so that it made a southward bend and led out about twenty five feet to deep water and served as a diving platform about five feet above the water. This deep hole ran from the middle all the way to a small point jutting out from the south bank, which provided an easy exit from the lake and a small place for spectators to watch.

It must have been at least a couple of years before Luke told Lorelai that he didn't like festivals, because Rory was still young and when she asked Luke the night before the festival to come along he sighed heavily and came up with an excuse about not having a reason to be open anyways with everyone gone to the lake, and agreed. With a smile and a skip, Rory left with the promise of returning bright and early the next day.

Rory and Lorelai showed up at ten o'clock the next morning—bright and early for them—towing a wagon with two coolers and their backpack full of extras in it. The air was already sticky and hot, and according to the weather man it was past eighty degrees. Lane was also with them, and he could see Mrs. Kim not far behind, talking to a couple of other townsfolk. Babette and Morey were also nearby, looking like a pair of lost tourists in Hawaiian shirts, shorts, and flip flops—though Morey still had his dark sunglasses and fedora on. Sookie was already at the lake, having scouted the prime spots and set up her grill for cooking. Rory and Lane were wearing shorts over their one-piece bathing suits, and Lorelai was wearing a short, light green frilly skirt and a thin white tee shirt—with the strings of her bathing suit top peaking out of back of the neck—along with her sandals. Luke was wearing his UDT shorts and a tight brown tee shirt, with his towel draped over his right shoulder and his cap on backwards. He took a look at the wagon and asked, "Why do you have two coolers?"

"Glad you asked!" Lorelai said excitedly. "It's part of my system." She pulled open the lid on the cooler in the front of the wagon. "This one has all our munchies—chips and cookies and all that stuff. And the sodas and a couple juice boxes in case someone gets the urge to be healthful." She gave him a look as she said this last part.

"What's in the other one?" He was almost afraid to ask.

"That contains the grown up sodas." Lorelai opened the lid a sliver and he caught sight of several amber colored bottles. "Do you have anything you need to add to the coolers?"

"No, I didn't know I was supposed to make a beer run last night after I closed." Luke commented.

"That's okay, you can drink mine. I'll need some help anyways—they're all about to outlive their 'born on' dates and I needed an excuse to drink them. Although…" She stopped a moment, as if to ponder. "I haven't had anything to drink in a while, and I definitely haven't had a lot to drink in a long time, so I'm still trying to shake my amateur status. What about you?" She asked. "Are you a lightweight or am I going toe-to-toe with a professional today?"

"I can hold my alcohol." Luke said.

"With both hands?" Lorelai asked, hands on her hips as if she were quizzing him.

Luke wasn't sure what she was talking about but he played along. "Yes, with both hands."

She smiled and laughed. "Well then, we'll have to watch out for each other. We can be beer buddies."

"Sure, why not." Luke agreed.

"You're not going to take advantage of me, are you?" Lorelai asked with mock uncertainty.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Luke assured her.

"Such a gentleman," She grinned and turned to Rory and Lane, who were talking about the other kids from their school that would be there. "Alright ladies, we have food, drinks, sunscreen, towels, and a man. Let's boogey on outa here."

The walk to the lake was pleasant, with Rory and Lane bouncing back and forth between the adults and their school friends. Lorelai handed the wagon off to Luke when they reached the edge of the grass so that she could try and find Sookie. When the two women found each other they hugged and Lorelai waved Luke over to them. The group laid out the beach towels and Lane and Rory applied sunscreen before running off to the lake-shore with their other friends. "Be careful!" Lorelai called after them, and they waved back that they would.

Luke saw the slightly worried look on Lorelai's face as she watched them run off. "I'm sure they'll be fine." He told her.

"I know," Lorelai replied. "But neither one of them is a good swimmer. Just about the only time Rory ever swims is if we visit my parents for the Fourth of July. And even then it's just in the pool in their backyard or when she took a few lessons when she was, like, eight or nine."

Luke had never seen the house Lorelai grew up in, but every time he heard about it his imagination grew. A pool in their backyard! Stars Hollow hadn't built a town pool until he was twenty-two. His generation grew up swimming in the lake and the streams around town. And lessons? Never in a million years. He remembered the day he told his parents that he wanted to learn how to swim. The next afternoon he and his dad both walked to the bridge over the lake in their swimsuits and when they got there, without warning, his dad threw him in and laughed as Luke scrambled back to the bridge, shivering and choking and barely above the water. His father asked if he was alright and when Luke said yes he pulled him back onto the bridge. His dad took off his shoes, dove into the lake, and the two spent the remaining daylight learning different swimming strokes. He was sure it was the most dangerous way to learn, but he was also sure it made him a better swimmer. _Breathing is a good motivator_, the thought to himself with a smile.

Lorelai noticed the smile on his lips and asked, "What?"

"Oh, nothing," Luke said. "I just can't imagine having a pool in my backyard."

"Wait until I tell you how big the pool house was…" Lorelai said with a smirk.

"I'd rather not hear about your former life of luxury." Luke said.

"Okay," Lorelai drew the word out, as if he was missing out on something cool. "Just know that our house was scheduled for the next episode of 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous' before the show was unceremoniously cancelled."

"Such a shame," Luke said as he stepped out of his sandals and looked around. Sookie was about twenty feet away, stacking her charcoal briquettes into an intricate pattern. "Do you think she needs any help?" Luke wondered out loud as he watched.

"She's got a system. It's all under control," Lorelai said. She was feeling a little self conscious, knowing she would have to reveal her bathing suit eventually and that everyone, especially Luke, would see it. Besides, she didn't want to get 'farmer John' tan lines from her shirt. _Now's as good a time as any,_ she decided since Luke was still looking in Sookie's direction. She quickly pulled her shirt off—but left her skirt on—and continued talking. "And just so you know, you really don't want to get in her way when it comes to cooking." She laughed. Luke turned around at that and she watched his eyes take her in quickly.

"Are you really going to swim?" He asked with a smile to cover himself. He always needed a little warning before he saw her in a swimsuit, and hadn't gotten any at all this time. One moment she was fully clothed, the next, she was in a sky blue halter top bikini with some sort of flower design printed on it.

"I might," Lorelai replied wistfully, mulling it over in her mind. "What about you? You got to swim laps today or something?"

"You could say that," Luke said, then pulled his shirt over his head, careful not to knock his hat off. He wanted to swim, and didn't care too much one way or the other who else saw him in a bathing suit and what they thought of it. The suggestive, teasing comments people always made were unavoidable and he was used to it. He folded his shirt messily and laid it down on his towel.

"So the only reason you agreed to come along was to eat free food and have a post work-out beer without depleting your own stash?" Lorelai said, an exaggerated look of hurt on her face.

"Pretty much," Luke answered indifferently.

"You do know you cap is still on, right?" Lorelai told him hesitantly; as if she wasn't sure she should say anything.

"It keeps the hair out of my eyes," Luke grinned a little at her.

"Oh, well—if you needed a swim cap I would have lent you mine." Lorelai teased.

"No offense, but those things are a little nerdy." Luke said seriously.

Lorelai burst into laughter at that, "Because wearing a ball-cap in the lake isn't?" She finally got out.

"Well, I have to do something otherwise the girls would be stopping by every few minutes and I'd never get any peace." Luke told her matter-of-factly.

"I'm sure," Lorelai said, the sarcasm evident in her voice.

Feeling a bit cocky, Luke pulled off his cap and smiled. Moments later an athletic blonde slowed down as she walked by. "Hey Luke, I didn't think I'd see you here." She smiled at him.

"Hey, Amy," Luke replied in a friendly voice

"I'll try to find you later, we need to catch up—it's been too long."

"That'd be nice." Luke said.

"Okay, bye." Amy walked off toward the cluster of tables.

Lorelai was at a loss. "You could have planned that," She said in an accusatory voice.

"I could have…" Luke agreed. "But I think it's more likely that I just saw her coming."

Lorelai made a disgusted face and ground her heel a little. "Whatever—put your hat back on and go swim, I need to help Sookie anyways. How long are you going to be?"

"Only about a half hour or so," Luke said.

"I think lunch will be ready by then," Lorelai said. "Are you going to come back here or will I have to go find you and your _friend _Amy?"

"No, I'll probably just say a quick hello on my way back. Her _husband_ and I used to do carpentry work for a construction contractor."

"Okay, just don't expect us to save anything for you if you're late." She waved him off and walked toward Sookie.

Luke just smiled at her and walked to the shoreline. _There're too many people in the water,_ he thought, a little disappointed that he wouldn't be able to swim where he usually did. He scanned the lake again and noticed the far shore was much less crowded. And there, where the water was bordered by the bridge on one side and a fallen log on the other, would be a decent spot to swim. It made a lane that was maybe thirty or thirty five yards long—a little shorter than his favorite spot, but the water was deep and there was nobody in the area. It would do. He walked down the shore to the bridge, twisting and turning to avoid the children playing. When he got to the end of the bridge he tugged his cap down tight and made a shallow water dive. The water felt cool and smooth on his skin, and he glided slowly over to the other side of the lake and the remaining part of the bridge. He held onto the side momentarily and took off his cap, setting it on the bridge. _I'm sure she knows I was joking about wearing the hat when I swim, _he thought. He took a deep breath, then pushed off with his feet and began his laps.

Meanwhile, Lorelai was doing what she could to help Sookie—which mostly involved arranging all the food and accoutrements on a small fold-out table they had appropriated. The entire time Sookie was concentrating—much too hard in Lorelai's opinion—on perfectly grilling the patties.

"You and Rory want cheeseburgers right?" Sookie asked when the burgers were nearly done.

"Yeah," Lorelai said.

"What about Luke?" Sookie asked.

"I'm afraid he'll just have to deal with eating red meat today." Lorelai said a little dramatically.

"I'm surprised he's here today." Sookie chuckled as she watched the grill.

"Same here," Lorelai agreed. "When Rory told me last night after we left the diner that he was going to come with us to the festival I nearly tripped over the curb as we crossed the street. Apparently she decided on a whim to invite him since he told her he likes to swim. I guess in her young mind that was all the reason she needed to ask him to come. I kind of think he came just because Rory asked, you know?" Sookie nodded her head. "I don't know how long he'll stay today, but I'm glad he came."

"That's nice of him," Sookie said, and then began taking the patties off the grill. She glanced at her watch and said excitedly, "Okay: they're ready, it's eleven o'clock, time to eat!"

It took about fifteen minutes to find and corral the girls so they could eat, and Lorelai saw that Luke had finished his swim and was chatting with the blonde girl named Amy, a man she assumed was Amy's husband, and an attractive young brunette woman. He made it to the table just as everyone was dishing up and fell in at the back of the line, still shirtless and dripping water. Babette and Mrs. Kim were ahead of him, and Babette talked a mile a minute about a gig Morey played many years ago in Florida while Mrs. Kim just nodded her head.

Tropical-themed music drifted with the wind from a stereo under one of the canopies, and Mrs. Patty and Morey could be heard warming up on a keyboard and microphone. In ten minutes everyone had a lunch, and Rory and Lane grabbed sodas and then moved away from the adults to discuss important preteen matters with their friends. When Luke got to the coolers Lorelai was there, handing drinks out to the other adults. She looked at him and said teasingly, "Let me guess, apple juice?"

Luke just shook his head no.

"Hmm," she said, as if perplexed. "If you want to go with the party theme today I would suggest coconut milk."

He could see that she had a million little responses all lined up, so he just said, "How about a barley soda."

"A what?" Lorelai asked.

"A beer."

"Oh," she said in a pleasantly surprised voice and pulled out a slender glass bottle and handed it to Luke, who twisted the cap off. "I've never heard it called that before. Where'd you come up with that?"

He took a sip of his beer. _What the hell, _he thought to himself. _May as well have a little fun with this. _He looked left and right, leaned in close, and in a low, conspiratorial voice said, "It's code."

Lorelai let out a little gasp, "What for?" She whispered.

"What if there're only two beers left?" He hypothesized. "We can't just say that out loud because then everyone will want one and they'll be gone before we can get them. This way we can alert each other to the shortage without them ever knowing—it's all part of watching out for each other as beer buddies."

"Cool," Lorelai nodded her head in agreement. "You really thought this out."

"I take my fun seriously." Luke said.

Lorelai grinned at that, "As you should."

"Yeah," Luke said. Lorelai fished out a beer for herself and then sat down on her beach towel. She straightened her legs, crossing them at the knees, and leaned back to rest on her left elbow. Her plate sat in front of her on the towel and picked at it from there. It was nearly impossible to wear a short skirt to a picnic and eat with any semblance of decorum, but she was determined to try._ I should have worn the sarong, _she thought to herself. Luke didn't have any of those problems: for him it was just plain uncomfortable; he hadn't done a picnic since he was a kid and his body protested against the awkward sitting position and hard ground. He sat down in a sort of relaxed Indian style and put his plate in his lap. _I should have brought my camping chair_ he realized. Mrs. Kim was called away right after she sat down to help with a minor emergency involving a few members of the festival committee and the adults ate in relative silence. Babette and Lorelai kept up most of the conversation, talking about how wonderful the festival was and the town gossip. It wasn't until after Luke finished lunch that he realized he was having fun. He had taken the day off and was actually out enjoying himself with friends; sipping on a beer, eating real cheeseburgers, and humming Jimmy Buffett tunes to himself at a little before noon on a Saturday. _Not a bad way to spend the day_.

Rory and Lane came running up to them a few minutes later. "Mom!" Rory called out. "Jennifer said that they were going to jump off that platform, can we go?"

"Who's going to be watching you?" Lorelai asked.

"Everyone's over there," Rory said.

"Yes, but who is watching you girls?" Lorelai asked again.

"Well, no one specifically," Rory admitted. "But there's like, twenty people over there."

"You guys really need someone to be there watching."

"Mo-om." Rory pleaded.

"You're not very strong swimmers, and that contraption goes a long way out. What if you get tired or slip or something? God knows I won't be able to come after you, I can barely swim at all." Lorelai told them.

"Fine," Rory grumbled, and then looked right at Luke. When he just smiled back she asked in an entreating voice, "Luke?"

It took him a few seconds to realize that she wanted him to come and be the lifeguard for their little group. "Me?" was all he could think of saying.

"Of course." Rory said as if it were obvious.

"Rory, don't you think you should _ask_ Luke if he wants to watch you guys?" Lorelai said.

Rory sighed impatiently, as if the actual asking was merely a formality and she expected Luke to agree. "Luke, could you come watch us even though we'll be _fine_?" She directed the last part of her sentence at her mother.

"Um, sure," Luke looked over to Lorelai, who gave her begrudging approval. "I'll meet you over there in a couple minutes."

Rory's face brightened, "Thanks Luke." She and Lane ran off towards the platform.

Lorelai turned to him, "You didn't have to say yes, you know."

"Well it's either that or just sit here and get sunburned on the lakeshore."

"Since your options are so varied…" Lorelai commented sardonically.

"What else do you suggest I do?" He asked, clearly suspicious of her ideas.

"You mean other than catching up with _Amy_ and her husband…" Lorelai began.

"Yes, I mean other than that."

"Well…you could give me swimming lessons." She suggested, batting her eyelashes at him. She laughed when he stuttered a little.

"See, that would involve you actually getting into the water." He got out in a skeptical tone.

"Yeah, you're right." Lorelai said. "You better get going before Rory thinks I've changed my mind."

"Don't worry about the girls," Luke stood and tossed his hat next to his crumpled tee shirt. "They'll be fine. You can relax and do…whatever it is that you're going to do."

"Sunbathe," Lorelai answered as if it were obvious.

Luke shook his head and walked to the edge of the lake. He could see Rory and Lane on the bridge, waiting for him, so he waded in and swam over to the bridge. When he got there he asked, "Ready?"

"Yeah!" They both yelled at the same time.

"Okay, I'll be right over here," He pointed to a spot in the water to the side of the platform. "If you need help just let me know."

But the girls were already running to the end of the bridge and climbing onto the scaffolding, which swayed under the weight of the other kids horse-playing on it. Rory hesitated when they got to the end, and then Lane took a step back and jumped off, letting out a high-pitched scream. She hit the water with a splash and went under a moment, then popped back up and doggy-paddled towards Luke, who was treading water about fifteen feet away. She caught his arm and he asked, "You okay?" She just grinned and took a breath before continuing back to the bridge. When she got there she pulled herself out of the water and started back for the dive platform.

Luke looked back at Rory, who was staring down at the water and biting her lower lip. She looked out at Luke, but he didn't say a word—if she wanted to jump she'd have to do it on her own. Finally, she took a couple steps back, and Luke half-expected her to keep going and climb back down to the bridge. But then she launched herself off at an angle, coming for him. She landed about ten feet short and was paddling toward him almost before she hit the water. Her little arms and legs were moving a million miles an hour but she was going almost nowhere. Her eyes were wide and Luke could see she was starting to panic so he spoke calmly. "Easy, Rory, you're almost here." She made it to him and gripped his right arm hard, digging her nails into his biceps and huddling close to his chest. "Hey, calm down." He said gently. "You're fine, you did great."

"It took forever to get to you." Rory said, obviously nervous but still smiling.

"That's because you were so tense. Swimming's all about being relaxed." Luke told her. "Otherwise you just waste energy." She was breathing slower now, but still had a death grip on his arm, and it was beginning to hurt him. "You want to try again?" he asked.

"Let me catch my breath," She said. They floated for a minute, until she decided that she was ready. Luke watched as she measured the distance between them and the bridge with her eyes. "Can you follow me?" She asked.

"I'll be right beside you." Luke agreed.

"Okay, I'm ready." Rory let go and began to doggy-paddle at a furious pace.

"Slow down, Rory," Luke said. "You've got to paddle smoothly." She slowed down a little, and began to move faster through the water. "Good," he encouraged. "Keep going." He side stroked slowly just out of her reach, so she would be forced to find a way to keep going if she got tired. But she did much better this time, and when they made it to the bridge she grabbed onto the wood and turned to him with a smile. "Thanks," she said, and then climbed out. Luke looked over to see that Lane was ready again, so he swam back into position and waited for her to jump again. After they had both jumped a second time, they seemed to loosen up and rejoined their friends. Luke was relegated to more of a lifeguard role, watching over and occasionally helping them or one of their friends if they got into a little trouble.

Lorelai was sneaking glances of all this in between helping the others to clean up from lunch. _Just to make sure that Rory and Lane are okay, _she kept telling herself. She didn't know why she was so worried—she trusted Luke. But still…_it's that damn overprotective parent syndrome,_ she thought. When they were finished, Babette wandered toward the music to find Morey and Mrs. Kim returned, standing next to Lorelai and Sookie. She surveyed the area and asked, "Where's Lane?"

"She's swimming with Rory and a few of their school friends." Lorelai responded.

"Is that her out there on that _thing_?" Mrs. Kim was looking in the direction of the bridge.

"It's okay, Luke's out there with them." Sookie reassured her.

"Luke?" Mrs. Kim furrowed her eyebrows. "From the diner?"

"Yeah," Sookie said.

Mrs. Kim looked at Lorelai and said, "Good choice."

"Thanks," Lorelai smiled. "I thought so myself—after all, he's a really good swimmer."

Mrs. Kim looked a little confused for a moment and then shook her head. She started to walk toward the lake.

"Where're you going?" Lorelai asked.

"I've got to talk to Lane," She said.

"She's not in trouble, is she?"

"No," Mrs. Kim said. "Her oldest cousin just got engaged, and the wedding will be at our house."

"Oh, congratulations! When did you find out?" Sookie asked.

"Just this hour—I go home to get chairs for Taylor. There was a message on my answer machine." Mrs. Kim started to walk away.

"Stay here, I'll go get her." Lorelai offered. "Finish eating—we saved your plate." She pointed to the table, where Mrs. Kim's food sat waiting.

"Thank you." Mrs. Kim said.

Lorelai picked her way through the crowd toward the bridge, trying not to step on picnickers and or get run over by rowdy children. Near the bridge a small group of young women were watching all the action going on in the middle of the lake. As she got closer she could pick out the voices and low laughter. "I never knew he was so good with children." A blonde remarked with a little surprise. "Aww, look at that—he's holding that little girl so she can catch her breath."

"I'd like for him to hold onto me." Another commented in an evocative tone. The others laughed in agreement and Lorelai realized the speaker was that brunette she'd seen talking to him earlier.

"I hear he's single…" A third said, and Lorelai recognized this brunette vaguely. _What is her name…Julie? Yeah, I think so._

Lorelai entered the conversation. "Who's single?" She asked.

Julie looked up at her and smiled, "Hey, Lorelai—I was talking about Luke Danes. Do you know if he is?"

"I think so…" Lorelai answered hesitantly.

"I think he just broke up with someone." Julie said.

_What? _Lorelai thought. _I didn't even know he'd been dating someone._

"No, I think it's been a while." The blonde said. "But he seems sad, don't you think?"

"Maybe he just needs a little help getting over it" the first brunette said.

_Tramp,_ Lorelai thought. _Does she even live in this town?_ "Do I know you?" Lorelai asked with a smile.

"No, I don't think so." She said. "I'm Kelly. I just came for the day with a friend and her husband."

"Ah, Amy," Lorelai made the connection.

"Are you two friends?"

"No, I just know the name." Lorelai said.

"Well, when she saw that Luke was here she thought we'd hit it off."

"Don't you know Luke pretty well?" Julie asked, as if she just remembered the fact.

"As good as anyone else, I guess." Lorelai answered.

"Do you know who he's here with?"

"Um, me," Lorelai answered.

"Really?" The others asked—almost in unison—with raised eyebrows, and Lorelai had to try hard not to chuckle at that.

"Well, technically my daughter asked him to come—she knows he likes to swim so I guess she thought he'd have a good time today."

"That's so sweet." Julie said.

"So what's he like?" Kelly asked.

"Oh, you know: a little grumpy, makes good coffee, good with tools—"

"I bet he is." Kelly interrupted with a wink.

Lorelai's disgust must have been obvious because Julie spoke up. "Ignore her—she's had a few too many margaritas this afternoon."

"I'm perfectly okay." Kelly defended herself. "Never felt better."

"We'll see how she feels tomorrow…" Julie said.

Kelly just made a face, as if she knew what would be coming. "I'm just saying," She continued. "Why not have a little fun today? You don't mind if I talk to Luke do you?" She asked Lorelai.

Lorelai hesitated a moment. _This floozy throwing herself at Luke? Even if he is still broken up about whatever relationship just ended…_ "I guess not."

But her pause was enough for the others to infer a different answer. "Don't worry," Julie said, "We'll keep her under control."

_Good luck,_ Lorelai thought. "Well, I have to go," she said. "It was really nice talking to you."

"Bye, Lorelai." Julie said.

"It was nice to meet you," Kelly said as Lorelai walked away.

_God, she'll be a great catch someday._ Lorelai thought sarcastically. She made it across the bridge and climbed carefully up the scaffolding, feeling a little uneasy. She found Lane in the water below her. "Lane!" She called.

Lane looked up, "What?"

"Your mom wants to talk to you for a minute—you're not in trouble or anything." She added when Lane looked a little worried.

"Okay, I'll be right there." Lane swam for the bridge.

"Mom!" Rory shouted from behind and made Lorelai jump. "Hey!"

"Jeez, don't sneak up on me." Lorelai said, trying to catch her breath. Suddenly there was yelling, and Lorelai looked up to see four boys rough-housing before one slipped backward. Then things happened with cartoonish slowness: the boy knocked over a girl, who stumbled into Rory and her friend Jennifer, who both hit Lorelai. She waved her arms and curled her toes over the edge of the scaffolding in an effort to stay upright, but the metal was slick and her bare feet lost their purchase. Then suddenly she was weightless; the water was rushing up at her and she had just enough presence of mind to take a deep breath before she made an awkward dive into the water. She instinctively clawed for the surface, but her eyes were shut tight and she was too disoriented to know which direction was up. She heard sounds coming from behind her, but they were muffled and far-away.

Then she felt a cool hand come under her right arm and across her body to her left shoulder, and just as quickly the sun was shining and she was coughing a little, trying to catch her breath. Rory's voice was could be heard from behind and above, yelling angrily, "What's the matter with you?! That's my mom you just pushed in…!"

"It's okay." Luke's voice came from directly behind her and she realized he was the one who had pulled her up. She felt his arm loosen a little and she tightened her grip instinctively.

"Relax, I've got you." Luke said. He maneuvered in front of her, holding her arms. _Jesus, no wonder Rory's scared of the water._

Lorelai's fingers were hurting, and she became conscious of the fact that she had a white-knuckle grip on him. She calmed down, "I'm fine." She told him. _Now that I'm through freaking out._

"I know," Luke was pulling her towards shallow water. "You just looked a little caught off-guard."

"Yeah, well, I was always better at _modeling_ a swimsuit than I was at actually _swimming_." Lorelai quipped. _Now that I've embarrassed the hell out of myself—God, this one is Cosmo-worthy._

"I'll agree with that." Luke chuckled. His feet touched the muddy bottom and he pulled her a in a little closer. "There, I think you should be able to stand here."

Lorelai put her feet down and felt them sink into the mud._ Eww._ She made a face and Luke unsuccessfully tried to cover a laugh. "What?" she asked, a little annoyed.

"It's just mud, Lorelai." He said.

"It's still gross," She walked in so that she was only in about two feet of water and took her skirt off, which was now soaked. _Don't need to let it get all muddy, too, _she thought and threw it onto the grass a few feet up the shore.

"You really do need swim lessons." Luke commented, forcing himself not to stare.

She was about to reply but Rory came running down the shore. "Mom! Are you okay?"

"Fine, sweetie," Lorelai answered.

"Do you need anything?" She asked.

"No, I'm fine. Go catch up with Lane, I think she was getting some exciting news from Mrs. Kim."

"Okay," Rory walked off to find her friend.

Lorelai turned to Luke, "So what about those lessons?"

"Now?" He asked. _I was just joking with her. _

"Yes, now, I'm already in the water."

"You don't want lessons from me," Luke began.

"Why not? You swim just fine." Lorelai challenged.

"I'm…not a good teacher."

"Well, I'm not a good student, so maybe we'll cancel each other out."

"Some other time," Luke said. _God knows I'd never survive that little outing._

Lorelai put her hands on her hips. "Luke, you offered to give me lessons; now are you going to teach me today or aren't you?"

Luke stumbled over his words a moment. "I aren't," he finally answered in his best Walter Eckland impression. He walked backward a few paces before falling into the water, turning over, and swimming out to the far end of the lake. Lorelai, a little confused by the turn of events, returned to Sookie.

He swam hard for about twenty minutes to clear his head of the potential situations that swimming lessons could have led to, all ending with him losing self-control and Lorelai never speaking to him again. _There are a thousand different ways for that to end—all of them badly. _When his mind had exhausted all the possibilities and returned to some semblance of normality he decided that it was best to get out. _I'm going to have to face her sometime. _As he was coming out of the water he met up with his friend Jeremy. "Hey, man." Jeremy said. "How're you doing?"

"Good," Luke wiped the water from his face with his hand.

"So is the diner thing working out?" Jeremy asked.

"Yeah, it's doing well," They walked through the crowd.

"Did you meet Amy's friend?"

"Yeah," Luke drew the word out so Jeremy could tell he wasn't exactly enthused about her.

"Amy means well…" Jeremy offered.

"I know, and she seems nice. But I don't think I'll take her out." Luke said.

"Still need some time?" Jeremy asked.

"For what?"

"Rachel." Jeremy answered.

"No—I'm fine." Luke growled. "Haven't heard from her, haven't thought about her."

"Look, man. I know it was tough. But you've got to get back in the game, here." Jeremy said. "You don't want to be angry for the rest of your life. The stress level's just too damn high."

"I'm not angry." Luke told him.

"Yeah, well you can't just not care anymore either." Jeremy continued. "Not only is that a cop-out, but what good does that do?"

"Thanks for the relationship advice." Luke answered contemptuously.

"Hey, I'm not saying it's easy." Jeremy held his hands up in defense. "Hell, Amy and I fight, and it can be bad; but—"

"Man, she left me!" Luke cut him off. "I wasn't worth sticking around for. You know that—this whole damn town knows that. My sister told everyone when she found out. Bud and Maizie were here for a few hours, Mia called from the inn to 'see how I was doing,' hell, I even got a call from my uncle asking if I needed any help in the diner since he was going to be in the area for some veterans' reunion. And I don't know if you remember my uncle, but that's basically as big a lifeline as he'll throw anyone. So forgive me if I'm a little jaded," he finished bitterly

"Okay," Jeremy appeased. "I'm sorry."

Luke released a long sigh and rubbed his temple. "I'm not mad, I'm just not up to forgiving and forgetting this just yet. Besides, she's a little too…out there…for me. It doesn't feel right, you know?"

"I figured." Jeremy smiled. "She'd be scary if it wasn't so funny, huh?"

"Yeah," Luke agreed. "Tell Amy thanks for the thought though."

"Well, you can't blame Amy for trying. I think it must be a woman thing to try and take care of us—it's in their blood or something." He paused a moment before becoming serious. "Listen, I've been doing really well with the contractors—I've even been doing some work out of state, and they want me to become a manager, or an overseer—whatever they call a head carpenter for a region. Like a foreman, only I've got several projects to look after."

"Oh, congratulations," Luke said.

"Yeah, well, it means I'll be doing a lot of traveling—Amy and I will be doing a lot of traveling. And my boss was telling me about an opening in Montana, and Amy has always wanted to live out west, so we might be moving in the next year or so. But I'll still be pretty easy to get a-hold of. I'm just saying if, you know, you need some extra money on the side or something like that, let me know. You're pretty much the only guy I know who's even close to my level." he said with a smile.

"Like hell, I was much better than you." Luke told him.

Jeremy half-smiled, "Well, regardless, give me a call if you feel the need to become Norm Abrams for a couple days."

"Yeah, and let me know if you feel the need to become part of the food service industry. I could use a good dishwasher."

There was a shout above the crowd and Jeremy looked up to see Amy trying to get his attention. "I gotta go—I've got to be back for dinner with the in-laws." He explained with a little grimace. "Don't be a stranger, okay?"

"Same to you," Luke said. They shook hands and went opposite directions. Luke saw Lorelai laying on her towel, wrapped in a tropical red and blue sarong and reading a book.

"Hey, grab a barley soda," She said with a smile when she heard him coming.

"Thanks," he said as he twisted the cap off.

"Are you alright?" Lorelai asked, taking a sip of her own. _I wonder if he's missing his ex._

"Yeah, I'm fine. Look, I'm sorry about earlier." He tried to explain, "It's just that, well, now isn't really the best time to try and learn how to swim. There're too many people and we'd always be trying to dodge everyone else…"

"I understand," Lorelai said. "Maybe some other time we can try. I want to learn exactly how you did."

"No you don't." Luke assured her with a laugh.

"Why not?"

"Because if I taught you the same way my dad taught me you'd want to kill me."

"How did you learn?" Lorelai asked.

"Well," Luke sat down next to her on his towel. "When I was nine, I decided I was going to be a good swimmer. I mean, I could swim a little, but I wanted to be a really good swimmer." He smiled a little. "So that night I told my parents about my plans. My mom and dad were on the couch—she was reading and he was watching news. When I told them my dad looked up and said 'Really?' in a tone that I should have known meant trouble. So the next afternoon we walked in our flip-flops to this bridge on this lake…" He waved in the direction of the scaffolding, "in our swimsuits and when we got here, he shoved me in before I knew what happened."

"He pushed you in?" Lorelai asked in surprise.

"Yeah, and when I finally made it back to the bridge I was coughing and sputtering and shivering—because for some reason I'd decided to become a swimmer in October."

"October?"

Luke nodded his head. "Uh-huh, so I'm hanging on for dear life and he's on the bridge laughing at me. He asked me if I was alright and when I said yes he just said, 'Well, at least you can still float.' But then he dove in and we spent the rest of the afternoon learning basic swimming strokes."

Lorelai cocked her head at him. "Weren't you, well, freezing?"

"Yeah, I've never been so damn cold in all my life as I was that day. By the time we went home my lips and fingers were blue." Luke remembered.

"That must have sucked." Lorelai said.

"Actually, I thought it was a lot of fun—built character and all that good stuff."

"No one needs that much character." Lorelai shot back. "You're right; I don't want to learn that way."

"I don't blame you." Luke took a drink. "Sorry your skirt-thing got soaked earlier—it's not ruined or anything is it?"

"No."

"Good." They both sipped their beers. "What time is it?" Luke asked.

"Almost three," Lorelai answered. _Where'd the time go?_ "Why, you got somewhere to be?" _A meeting with Kelly, maybe?_

"No, I'm just really tired."

"Swimming will do that to you." Lorelai said knowingly.

"You spend all of five minutes in the water today and suddenly you're an expert?" Luke ragged.

"Hey, they were a very eventful five minutes." Lorelai defended herself. She heard movement and looked up to see Kelly walking their way.

"Hey Luke," She smiled. "I've got to go, but I just wanted to say it was so nice to meet you today."

"You too."

"I'll see you later, maybe?" She asked.

"Maybe, I'm pretty busy this week." Luke said.

"Okay, bye." She moved off to catch up with Amy and Jeremy.

"Are you really going to see her again?" Lorelai asked in what she thought was a disinterested voice.

"Only if she comes to the diner," Luke answered. "I don't know; it just didn't seem like we'd get along well."

"Sorry," Lorelai said before changing the subject. "Why don't you lie down? Just take a little nap."

"I would, but I fully believe that I'd end up with a whipped cream beard because of some prankster." Luke said.

"Don't worry, Rory and I will watch out for you," Lorelai told him.

"See, you two are the one's I'm worried about."

"Us?" Lorelai raised her eyebrows and projected her lower lip.

"Don't even try that…" Luke admonished.

"Oh, you can trust us." Lorelai assured him. "Come on, I've got a few old Cosmos and Vogues in the backpack; you can relax and read a little if you want—just veg out."

"What the hell, I could use a laugh," Luke said.

"Great, which one do you want?" Lorelai smiled as she went to the wagon and opened the backpack.

"Doesn't matter, it's not like I'll understand either one."

"We'll start you with a Vogue," Lorelai tossed the thick magazine down beside him. "Try to lure you away from the flannel."

They passed the rest of the afternoon like that: reading, sipping beers, and occasionally striking up short conversations. As evening fell Rory and Lane came back, and they all watched the summer sunset with Mrs. Kim, Sookie, and Babette and Morey. They left the lake as the insects began their nightly symphony and the fireflies emerged, and when they reached the diner Luke sent Lorelai and Rory home with coffee and a thanks for inviting him.


	9. Luke III

**A/N: **As promised, the first half of the double shot. The song is 'West Nashville Grand Ballroom Gown' by Jimmy Buffett (of course). In case you haven't noticed, I live in a bit of a time warp.

"**Her father had money and her mother had love.  
Channeled entirely to her dear sister Dove.  
Twenty-two years in society's plan,  
Was cancelled in the swing of her dear mother's hand."**

9. Luke

He remembers the first time she came into the diner after hours. It was the Fourth of July and she had spent the day with her parents—something he knew was a recipe for disaster. The Fourth was always the busiest day of the year for him—the population of Stars Hollow seemed to double due to all the tourists and townsfolk that turned out for the festival. It was also his longest working day—he opened at five-thirty in the morning so that the festival crew—crazy as they were—would at least be able to have a good breakfast before the chaos started. From about seven to eleven in the morning he could plan on being absolutely overwhelmed—not enough seats, not enough coffee, not enough patience displayed by customers who didn't understand that he could only help one table at a time. Things would calm down from just before noon to about six o'clock that evening as people participated in whatever craziness the festival planners had come up with. Then the morning routine would repeat itself during dinner hours, until about nine-thirty when people gathered in the square across the street from his front door to watch the fireworks. The fireworks marked the official end of the festival, but Luke stayed open until eleven in order to provide dessert and strong coffee for the tourists fortifying themselves for the trip home. Luke sent his help home then, but it would take at least another hour to clean up and prepare the diner for business tomorrow. Because of this, he usually opened the diner at seven the next morning instead of six. Every year he did this, and every year he swore to himself that it would be the last—the day was just too damn stressful. But business was always really good, and the town nearly had a coronary one year when he verbalized the idea of running the diner as if it were just another day. So he bit the bullet and joined the insanity, if only for a day.

So there he was—greasy and grouchy and tired from the long day—mopping the back corner of the diner at a little after eleven thirty at night, where that messy family from Virginia with the toddler who threw food had sat; and later where the couple from Massachusetts sat and the woman had dropped her cup—shattering the heavy yellow ceramic and splashing coffee everywhere—because the man had pulled a diamond out of his pocket and proposed right there, in the middle of the dinner crowd. It took twenty minutes for the diner to return to normal after she accepted, and he nearly had to fight off all the people to clean up the coffee and pieces of the cup. Through the whole thing the woman was crying and apologizing, but he shrugged her off and assured her everything was just fine. He even gave them a piece of free pie to show he meant it—one large piece of pie and two small forks so they could share. The man kept the handle of the cup—he said he wanted a little something to remind him of the day—and discreetly handed over a couple dollars while his new fiancé wasn't looking to pay for the broken cup. They thanked Luke, who put on a good smile considering how tired he was, and parted with promises to return someday.

Luke swung the mop hard and it sprayed water across the floor. _At least someone had a good time,_ he thought. Dear God, he was tired. _Quit daydreaming and focus,_ He scolded himself._ The sooner this is done the sooner you can get some sleep._ He splashed the mop back into the bucket and heard bells tinkling behind him. _Now I'm imagining things…_

"Oh, I'm sorry!" A very surprised voice came from the door, and Luke turned around to see Lorelai watching him with a confused look on her face. "Are you closed?" She didn't wait for an answer. "Cause Rory said you would be, but I don't know—the lights were on and the door was unlocked. But you're mopping so I guess you are closed…" she trailed off and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry," She said again. "I'll, uh, see you tomorrow I guess." She reached behind her for the doorknob, but couldn't find it and her fingers made little scratching noises as they searched for the exit.

It took a few seconds for Luke to catch up with all that she had said and formulate a response. "No, go ahead and stay," he told her. "What can I get you? I don't have much—maybe some pie or something."

"Actually, could I get some coffee?" Lorelai asked.

Luke would have smiled if he wasn't so tired. _Should have known,_ "It's nearly midnight." He said in an exasperated tone.

"Midnight?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah," Luke answered. "You drink coffee now and you'll never wake up in time for work tomorrow."

"Tomorrow's my day off." Lorelai told him in a tired voice.

"Well…"

"Well, your excuses for refusing coffee are exhausted, and so am I. So how 'bout a cup?" Luke poured her coffee with a scowl. "What are you doing up so late?" Lorelai asked.

"Extended hours mean extended messes—I've got to keep this place clean." Luke answered. "What about you?"

"Oh, still up from all the things going on today." She sipped her coffee. "What is that?" She pointed to the remains of the broken cup.

"Just one of the casualties of the day," Luke answered.

"What happened?" Lorelai was instantly curious.

"Some woman dropped it—her boyfriend proposed to her in the middle of the diner during dinner."

"Proposed?" Lorelai asked, and Luke nodded. "That's so romantic."

"And such a mess," Luke grumbled.

"Don't be so depressing," Lorelai admonished. "Did she say yes?"

"Of course she said yes, and then she couldn't stop crying. She was upset that she broke the cup and I had to give them a piece of pie so she'd calm down." Lorelai looked at him, wrinkling her brow. "What," he asked.

"Them? You gave one piece of pie to two people?" Lorelai questioned.

"I gave them two forks," Luke told her, thinking that would explain everything, but she just kept studying him. "It was a big piece of pie." He defended himself.

Lorelai smiled at that and her face brightened, "Lucas Danes, you are a romantic." She declared.

_What?_ "I most definitely am _not_." He argued.

"One piece of pie, two forks, a proposal," Lorelai ticked off the signs as evidence. "You are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am…whatever," Luke growled. "I don't know why I'm arguing with you anyways."

"Don't worry, I won't tell." Lorelai promised.

"So how was the thing with your parents?" Luke asked to change the subject.

"It was…eventful." Lorelai said.

"How?"

"It was some party for Dad's work. We kept things civil for most of the evening, but by the time the fireworks went off, we had just about stopped talking to each other."

"Any specific reason?" Luke wondered.

"Just the same old crap," Lorelai sighed. "They tell me I'm throwing my life away; I tell them I don't need any help. Mom nitpicks about me; I pick holes in her society life." She took a sip of coffee. "It's just that, we just got together for Memorial Day and I can't take two sessions with them back to back; and I'm pretty sure they feel the same way."

"Memorial Day was in May." Luke said.

"So?" Lorelai questioned.

"So, you've seen them twice in maybe two months."

"Too much for me, and you know why."

Luke closed his eyes a minute at her answer.

Lorelai must have thought he was just tired, because she finished her coffee quickly and stood up. "I'll let you finish up here," She said.

"Do you need anything else?" Luke asked, hoping she knew that he wasn't just referring to coffee or food.

"No, I'm good—just tired. I'll be fine by tomorrow." She smiled at him and walked to the door. "Thanks for the coffee," she called as she left.

As Luke went back to work, his mind was on another subject. _Why?_ he thought with more than a little anger and confusion,_ why is it that Mom and Dad died when Liz and I were kids even though we loved each other; but her family is perfectly healthy and can't stand the sight of one another._

* * *

"**Six hours later we hit Cincinnati.  
Yawning, she woke and then asked where we were.  
****When she found out she said 'I must be going.'  
****This close to Nashville was too close for her."**

He also remembers another event several years later. It was toward the end of the summer; school had already started and the town had just had some festival involving flowers the day before. Lorelai sat next to the register at the bar—it was her regular spot if she came to the diner by herself. The lunch crowd was busy but not overly demanding and she traded witticisms with him across the counter. An older lady came in and seemed to be searching the diner for someone in charge, so he waved her to the register. She had graying blonde hair and suntanned skin. She was thin and had on blue dungarees and a paisley button up shirt, and wore worn leather deck shoes. "What can I get you?" he asked.

"Some coffee," She said. "Two cups, to-go if you can."

"Sure." Luke turned to fill the cups.

The woman waited a moment and turned to Lorelai, "What's good here?"

"Oh, everything!" Lorelai told her enthusiastically.

"Really?" the woman said.

"Really, his coffee—world's best. And I would know; I'm a coffee fanatic." Lorelai smiled.

"What she means is she's a caffeine junkie." Luke added as he searched for lids to the cups.

"Hush," Lorelai told him. "Just because you're a health nut doesn't mean you have to ruin it for the rest of us."

Luke set the cups down and asked, "Anything else?"

"Can I have a few minutes to think it over?" The woman asked.

"Sure, just let me know when you decide." Luke grabbed the coffee pot and began to make the rounds, but he could still hear Lorelai and the woman talking.

"So who's the other cup of coffee for?" Lorelai asked.

"My husband," the woman said. "He's outside right now, just picking up some things at the market and a few last minute souvenirs for the grandkids."

"Aww."

"I'm Michelle, by the way." The woman introduced herself.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Lorelai."

"Lorelai," Michelle answered. "That's a beautiful name."

"Thank you. So, where are you headed?"

"We have a long trip ahead of us: we're going south down the seaboard and then meeting the family in Annapolis."

"Oh, is that where you're from?" Lorelai asked.

"No," the woman smiled. "My oldest grandson just entered the Naval Academy, so we're going to visit. I'm so proud of him."

"That'll be nice." Lorelai said.

"It will. We—my husband and I—we love the sea. He was in the Navy during the war and traveled all over the South Pacific. After the war he worked for a small yacht company in Massachusetts. When he retired we bought a forty foot sailboat and we've lived aboard it for about sixteen years now."

"Wow…that must be amazing."

"It is," Michelle agreed. "We've went everywhere…the Caribbean, then through the Panama Canal and eventually across most of the South Pacific. We stopped at a lot of the islands that Bill called on while he was fighting. He told me how much things had changed, but we took a few tours that included buildings and things still left over from the war. It was a wonderful time. Bill ended up leading the tour as much as the guide on a couple of occasions."

"What is it like—living on a sailboat?" Lorelai asked.

"I wouldn't trade it for anything." Michelle said. "There's always the risk of storms, but we have a good boat and we're both decent sailors…"

Luke stood in front of Kirk, who was concentrating hard and making numerous calculations on a small pad of paper. After a few seconds Luke asked gruffly. "Kirk, you want anything else?"

"No," Kirk answered without looking up.

"Then why are you still here, don't you have a job or something to be at?"

"I'm just calculating your tip," Kirk informed him. "Although…it just went down do to the rude service. Treating customers like this is going to lead to financial problems, may I sugg—"

Luke cut him off, "Kirk, if you don't vacate this table in the next thirty seconds you're going to have mobility problems."

"I was just going to say, if you're short-handed I could help in the mornings. I have excellent people skills."

"Don't you work at one of the unicorn shops?" Luke asked.

"Only in the afternoons."

"Then no. No one who has ever worked in any one of the unicorn shops can ever work at my diner." Luke growled.

"Why?"

"Just a rule I live by."

"But why?" Kirk asked again.

"Kirk," Luke threatened.

"But I—"

"Kirk!"

"Okay, I'm going." Kirk stood up and left some money on the table. "But just so you know, this last conversation has severely affected your tip today," He told Luke as he left.

Luke just sighed, pocketed the money, and moved on to other customers.

Michelle and Lorelai had watched the entire interaction. "Well," Michelle said with a sardonic smile. "He certainly is a personable fellow."

"Oh, don't let him fool you." Lorelai said. "He's a really sensitive guy."

"I am _not_ a sensitive guy." Luke disagreed from across the room.

"That's right," Lorelai said suddenly, turning to Michelle. "No one's supposed to know that." She cleared her throat and said loudly. "Luke is a tough, bad, mean man who most definitely isn't some romantic—"

"Lorelai!" He yelled in an exasperated tone.

Lorelai just smiled, and Luke sighed and went back to filling coffee cups. "Sorry about that," Lorelai said to Michelle. "He really is a nice guy. He's just a little grumpy sometimes, and it's my job to make sure he has enough joy in life."

Luke, who was nearly back to the counter, said, "Somehow I think the only joy involved is the joy you get from torturing me."

"It's for your own good, you just don't know it." Lorelai teased with a smile.

"Bill is the same way," Michelle agreed. "I practically had to drag him to the festival that just ended, and even then he only agreed to go if we stopped for a baseball game before we reached Annapolis."

"The horror!" Lorelai brought her hands to her cheeks.

"I know," Michelle laughed. "But it's really not that bad. We'll find a minor league game—those are a lot of fun, especially if you're lucky enough to show up on Bobble-Head Night."

"I can only imagine…" Lorelai laughed. Luke came back to the counter and replaced the coffee pot and waited to ask Michelle if she wanted anything else.

"The compromises we make for each other…" Michelle smiled. "But I'm sure you two know all about that."

"What?" Luke and Lorelai asked at the same time.

Michelle now looked a little confused, "I'm sorry—are you two not a couple?"

And Luke knew he had to nip her mistake at the bud. If Lorelai took advantage of _this_ little twist then he would be humiliated with the things he knew she would do and say. Not to mention the fact that this was happening in the middle of lunch at the diner…The situation would be impossible. So before Lorelai could speak, he cut her off and fixed the situation. "No." He spoke quickly, "No, we're not together. We're just friends."

He watched Michelle's eyes move between his own and Lorelai's and was suddenly aware that she wasn't saying anything. He turned his head a little and saw she was smiling. "He's right," she agreed in a slightly quieter voice. "Just good friends."

"I'm sorry," Michelle began, but Luke spoke up.

"It's okay. Know what you want?" He asked.

"Oh, I guess just donuts will do." Michelle decided. "A couple sprinkled for me, and a couple jellied for Bill."

Luke got the donuts and Michelle paid, telling them it was nice to meet them. They wished her a safe trip and she left to find her husband. Luke was busy with customers and Lorelai picked at her fries. When she finished her meal Luke handed her the customary to-go cup. "Here, have a good day," He told her.

"You would say that, wouldn't you?" Lorelai groused.

_What the hell? _"Did I say something to offend you?"

"No," Lorelai said, "It's just that I've got that travel rep coming in a couple days and it's driving everyone up the walls."

"I _know_, you told me all about it. That's why I said have a good day. As in 'don't let it drive you any crazier than you already are.'" Luke explained.

"I'm sorry, I'm not mad at you." Lorelai said. "You said nothing wrong." She paid and then slung her purse over her shoulder. "Bye."

"Bye," Luke called, a little confused. _Women,_ he thought.

* * *

"**So I stopped by the roadside and gave her five dollars.  
****She took it then kissed me and gave me a note.  
****She told me just to read it then mail it in Nashville.  
****On old loose-leaf paper to her mother she wrote:**

**She said, 'Mama I'm fine if you happen to wonder.  
****I don't have much money but I still get around.  
I haven't made church in near thirty-six Sundays,  
So screw all those West Nashville grand ballroom gowns.'"**

Later, during a lull, he replayed some of the conversation as he wiped the tables and counter to clean off the breakfast mess. He knew she was irked about something he'd said, and he had a pretty good idea that it was somehow related to him telling that older woman they were just friends. _But it's the truth, and if she's really in such a twist over that then maybe she isn't exactly who I thought she was. _Because God forbid he let her tease him with that angle. It went beyond simply being inappropriate; it was much too personal. Plus, it was right in the middle of the diner—it was the equivalent of the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show or Breaking News on CNN in terms of exposure and media coverage for the gossips of Stars Hollow. Living in this town had taught him that if nothing else people not only love gossip but love secrets and intrigue. And Lorelai running with this woman's assumption would not only lead to the people thinking they were together, but that they had been together for a while and kept their relationship a secret. Which put _everything_ on an entirely different level. Because he also knew that people heard what they wanted to hear, and that usually led to the most outrageous stories they could think of. The townspeople would come to them about why they hid their relationship and Lorelai would laugh it off until she had to return to the inn, and he would be left to deal with the fallout for the rest of the day. He would have to admit that they are not together, and that the thought of it was really nothing more than a good joke she played on an unsuspecting tourist. And although she would certainly play it as a joke and nothing more, Luke took his relationship with Lorelai Gilmore very seriously. He had to—clearly defined boundaries of friendship kept the both of them from embarrassing and uncomfortable situations. They reminded him that he was nothing more than a friend, and that she could trust him, even if he sometimes had difficulty remembering that he was _only_ her friend. _Because she is beautiful, _he thought to himself. And he knew she knew men found her attractive, but he tried hard to not be a pig about blatantly staring at her. Granted, he wasn't always successful, but he felt he had the right—every once in a while—to admire her beauty. If nothing else, she gave him a benchmark to measure others against.

He also had to admit that this line was not only for Lorelai's benefit. The last time he had attempted to transform a friendship into a relationship was nothing short of a complete disaster. Rachel couldn't settle in Stars Hollow, their relationship had failed, and she had run away from him to see what the world had to offer as a consolation for the wasted effort. And he had stayed and floundered in a heavy concoction of self-doubt and town pity. Because as much as he absolutely despised some aspects of Stars Hollow, he couldn't deny that it was a much better alternative to anywhere else in the world. The town was his home—the only group of people he'd ever identified with that was not related to him by blood or marriage. It was why he did not get in the way of town festivals and traditions no matter how pointless they were. It was why he put up with Kirk and all the strangeness that followed him. It was why he never completely banned Taylor from the diner, even though he couldn't look at the man without his blood pressure rising twenty or thirty points.

So he concluded that it was mostly for selfish reasons that he kept their friendship so clearly defined. Because it stung him a little every time he overheard Miss Patty and Babette gossiping about her going on a date with some guy. Because overhearing such things would inevitably lead him to wonder what kind of man she needed, and whether he would be able to measure up to the challenge. And usually that was what led to him staring at her. He surprised himself in the fact that he usually ended up staring into those deep blue eyes instead of the gentle swell of her breasts or the curves of her hips and the length of her legs. Not that her corporeal beauty wasn't distracting—she was physically gifted in a way that few women could match and he appreciated it—but if he was ever going to find the answers to the dangerous questions that sometimes arose in the back of his mind then he would have to look into those mesmerizing eyes. _After all, they are the window to the soul,_ he thought. He stopped at that and straightened up, scolding himself for being such a fool. _Can you **be** any more cliché, Danes?_

He knew she wasn't perfect—he hated that she and her parents were so spiteful to each other, while he had no parents at all. It was just unthinkable—even getting pregnant, even running away, they are family. _She's their daughter and they are her parents and they should be able to sit down and work everything out and just be thankful they even have each other to bitch at, dammit!_ He hated that she could be self-absorbed; that she didn't always see how her actions affected others, or that she expected certain people—he occasionally being among of them—to put her first, regardless of what they had going on, if she thought the situation called for it. There were other things, some large and some petty, that also occasionally got to him, but these were the main qualms he had with her. So she wasn't perfect, but then again he himself was far from perfect also, so it was a match—at least in terms of friendship.

* * *

"**Yeah, she's a long way from a West Nashville grand ballroom gown."**


	10. Lorelai IV

**A/N: **Part deux.

"**There are oceans of feelings between us,  
****Currents that take us and sweep us away.  
****That's why we seldom have seen us  
****In the light of a cold hard day."  
**'**If the Phone Doesn't Ring, It's Me,' Jimmy Buffett**

10. Lorelai

_He didn't say anything wrong at all,_ She thought to herself, a frown forming on her face. Still, the little incident at the diner during lunch refused to leave her conscience; which was why she was locked in her office under the guise of paper work, trying to figure out what was bothering her. _It wasn't so much anything he said, just how he said it._ She was disgusted with herself as soon as the thought formed. _God, I'm such a **girl**!_ She thought bitterly. But it was true; even though Luke was telling the truth, the way he told it really blindsided her. _"No," he'd scoffed. "We're just friends."_ And not even good friends—just regular friends. He answered so quickly, like it never even occurred to him that they _could_ be a couple, dismissing the idea as if it were a joke. _Or worse, like he was afraid he would miss an opportunity if another girl thought we were a couple._ An opportunity for what, she was hesitant to think about. She knew he was a decent man, but still…he was only a man. _And he is always alone…_

She was positive that he got out more and that she just didn't know it. _How could he not?_ She asked herself. As a totally objective third party, she could admit that he was easy on the eyes. And handy. And though his personality could be a bit…abrasive, she knew that he was capable of great kindness—she could tell by the things he did for his sister, or for her and Rory. Most women would positively swoon over such a man—she just had to remember that Kelly girl at the festival several years ago. _Surely Miss Patty or Babette are farming him out to single women they meet. And owning the diner? He must meet prospective dates all the time. I just never see him actually **go** on dates. _Her thoughts were beginning to run away from her, and she reined them in. _No, we're good friends and Rory and I are at the diner nearly every day, if he was dating someone he would say something. Or at the very least I'd bump into her at the diner._

Still…it ate at her. How indifferent he'd been with respect to the thoughts of 'what-if.' Who is he to think that they couldn't be something good—that she wasn't what he wanted. Maybe it was because he was several years older than her. Maybe that caused him to see her more as a little sister than as a potential partner. _Not that I even want to be with him_, she reminded herself firmly; she just wanted him to acknowledge the fact that she was desirable. She knew that most men found her beautiful and wanted to be with her, so why not him? And she knew all about the rumors and whispers that circulated Stars Hollow: that he really cared a great deal, almost too much. That he was even in love with her. Most of all, she would catch a look from him every now and then. He would be watching _her_—not checking her out but looking into her eyes; and when she caught him, he would glance away for a second and then smile at her a little guiltily, like he wasn't sorry that he was caught staring at her, but for the thoughts he was thinking about her. Those were the looks that left her muddled and stuttering because of the possibilities. She pored over the memories she had of the two of them, but could come up with nothing more than question marks. He had done so many things, not only for her but also for Rory. But at the same time, he acted indifferent to her gratitude, as if he were helping them because it was expected of him. And love? Well, all she had were rumors and guilty looks. She knew he cared, but he never said anything to her so she could never be sure how much. _Isn't it the guy's responsibility to act on his feelings?_

She thought of the times they had touched—really touched—over the years, and came up with very few. _The time he caught me watching 'Love Story,' the Christmas party, the dance on New Year's, and the hug goodnight,_ she didn't think the time she fell in the lake counted. _He was kind of forced to hold me then, otherwise I'd have probably drowned. _She sighed loudly._ Four times in five years. And three of those times were initiated by me. That's not exactly a good sign._ Well, then; that's fine. _If I'm that repulsive to him then I'll just keep my hands to myself._ She sighed again as she realized her mind had once again run off. She knew he didn't find her repulsive. She knew she was blowing this whole thing out of proportion. He probably thought he wasn't doing any more than setting the record straight. _God, I really need to stop analyzing every little thing…_she rubbed her forehead to ease the tension in her mind. There was a knock at her door and when she answered it she found one of the maids in a panic because she had knocked over a vase while she was vacuuming. So Lorelai returned to work, trying to figure out how in the world she could get the inn ready before that travel rep came.

She didn't go to the diner for a couple days because she was swamped with work. After the regional travel company representative had left, she was finally able to take a deep breath and let the inn stand down from alert status. She crossed the street with confidence, but when she picked up a large coffee mug and turned around she remembered their last conversation and became a little apprehensive. She smiled nervously and looked at him with big eyes. "Please, Luke?" She asked as she held out her cup. "Please, please, please, please?"

* * *

**Post Script: **We have reached the beginning. But a talented writer once said that the obvious beginning is never really the beginning; it's just the middle. And this seems to hold true. I hope to expand on the characters involved in the story--and as always, I appreciate feedback and/or suggestions.


	11. Chapter 11 Rory

**A/N:** This story has become my Everest. I can't quit, but every step is more difficult than the last. I have many, many bits and pieces of writing just waiting to be organized into some semblance of a story line. The problem is getting it down on paper so that it makes sense to readers. Believe me, that is a lot harder than it sounds. It's not easy to get back in the saddle again.

I know that this chapter jumps around quite a bit, but there is a lot of time to cover in order to catch up to the story. I left off at the beginning of the pilot in the last chapter, and in order for my story to progress I have to get everyone on the same page. I know Rory's first day at Chilton was important, but the show covered that well. It's my job to cover the things the show glanced over. I think the best place to start is Rory's birthday party.

Special thanks to Robbinpoppins. Without her I'd just be babbling incoherently. She is my Tenzing Norgay.

* * *

**"It no longer bothers me that I may be constantly searching for father figures..." --Alice Walker**

11. Rory

Chilton. In her mind the word conjured up foreboding images of unbearable class loads, snobbish and obscenely wealthy classmates, and stiff, unbending rules and traditions. But it also sounded like the key to her life plan: Harvard. Then starting a career as a journalist. And not long after she landed her first real gig, she would break a big story by using her trademark attention to detail, research, and writing skills to present an intensely personal account of…whatever her story would be about. She'd know it when she saw it, and in her life she'd found that the details usually fell into place as long as the general plan was well thought out and she could follow through with it.

She had remained focused throughout her junior high years, never wavering from the dream of Harvard, and setting her immediate sights on Chilton when she found out about the school. She'd overheard her mom and her grandmother talking about it over dinner on Memorial Day of her seventh grade year. She didn't catch much, just that Chilton had a reputation as one of the best—and most expensive—prep schools in the country. Not just Connecticut, or even New England, but the country! So when she had a few hours of free time later that week she went to the library and researched the school. The internet was still new to her, so she split her time between browsing on the web and checking through what periodicals she could find. And sure enough, it seemed that the reputation Chilton enjoyed was well-earned. Right then she decided she needed to graduate from that school. If she could just find a way to breach the subject with her mom…

But it was no easy task to bring up the prestigous prep school. Rory knew her mom's radar would perk up as soon as she mentioned anything about Chilton, so if Rory couldn't find a way to convince her mom that **she **was the one who researched the school and decided she wanted to go then it was basically a lost cause. But once again, the details fell into place. Statewide testing was held just after Christmas Break that year; and when the scores were posted it provided the perfect segue to mention Chilton, why she wanted to go, and what it would take for her to be accepted. And miracle of miracles, her mom agreed with her as soon as she heard it would help with Harvard. Unfortunately, it was too late to do anything that year, but the next would be crucial.

They would have to hurry if they were going to be ready in time to seek admittance by her freshman year. Rory's grades were not a problem, but she needed some extra-curriculars, and she needed to take entrance exams and meet with someone in the guidance administration. Obviously, any sports were out of the question; so she talked to her English teacher and was able to join her newspaper group. Entrance exams and interviews were wedged into her weekend schedule, and her mom conducted mock interviews and even wrangled in Sookie and Luke to help out a couple of times. Granted, these "interviews" usually degenerated into gossip and laughter after about fifteen minutes—especially if it was just Lorelai and Sookie—but they eased her nervousness and uncertainty.

She confessed her trepidation about the whole undertaking to Luke while she sat at the counter of the diner about a week before the real interview, but he just grunted and shook his head. "You'll do fine," He told her, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I'm sure," She agreed, though she didn't believe it and her doubt rang through in the tone of her voice.

Luke stopped making coffee and turned to her. "Look, you want to know a secret?" He asked.

"Yes." She told him, instantly intrigued. Luke never shared secrets.

"I haven't run this diner or worked in a hardware store my whole life—I've had a few different jobs and worked for more than a few different kinds of people." He started out and she listened intently. "And no matter who they were, there were two things that I found always helped. You've got to give 'em a good handshake and you've got to look 'em in the eye. If you can do that then you're ninety percent of the way there—the other ten percent is just luck."

Rory smiled a little, "That's it?"

"Yup."

"Well…that doesn't seem too hard."

"Nah, easy as pie." Luke pulled the lid off the pie dish and cut her a slice.

"Pie?" Rory asked.

"Yeah. Your mom told me to save her a slice and I figured, you know, you'd want one too." Luke said.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome." Luke held out his hand.

Rory was a little confused at first, but then she took his hand and shook it.

Luke nodded his head, "Not bad. Don't be afraid to have a firm grip, and make sure you don't just use your fingers."

"Like this?" Rory adjusted a little.

"Good." Luke let go. "Just like that."

Thanks, Luke."

He grunted and said, "Let me know when your mom gets here."

While the written tests were fairly straightforward, the interview was much longer than she expected—almost an hour. But she shook hands and made eye contact when she was shown in, and the atmosphere of the room immediately brightened. Smiles replaced taciturn frowns, and the two counselors and assistant principal asked about more than just her school life. After everything was finished she was left feeling tired but satisfied. There was nothing more to do than wait for the results.

* * *

Alternate. It was the only word that mattered to her and right now she _hated_ that word. Positively _loathed_ it. She had been named as an alternate. All her work was for nothing—she wasn't going to Chilton her ninth grade year. Someone else—probably someone with a bigger bank account—would be instead. She ground her teeth and buried herself in school. She would have to take the exams again and repeat the interview at the end of her year if she wanted to be considered for next year.

* * *

Rory was on the waiting list. Though technically it was a step up from the alternate status she held last year, the result was the same: she would have to wait for an opening. But that would never…

Suddenly Sookie let the cat out of the bag, and she'd never been happier. She'd made it, and she was going—the new boy who showed an interest in her wasn't really going to throw her off track. He was just a boy. And her mom was right, especially after Rory calmed down and assessed the situation. She didn't want to throw her life away over some boy. She'd worked so hard to finally get into Chilton and she wasn't about to lose her focus now.

* * *

Sixteen! She was sixteen—old enough to drive a car and no longer the little fish in the pond, even if she was just starting Chilton and had yet to make any real friends. _Today feels good,_ she decided with a smile as she and Lane walked into Luke's for breakfast. She jumped onto the counter and thought she would order pancakes today, with a side of bacon.

"Hey, wrong table." Luke told her.

"Since when is there a right table?" Rory wondered out loud, more than a little confused.

"Since the coffee cake I baked for you and the stupid balloons I blew up are at that table, over there."

_Oh my God..._ she turned in her seat, dumbfounded. "You blew up balloons for me?"

"Yep."

_I think that's a new record for Luke-emotions. _"Oh, Luke you old softie."

"I count to three and it's gone." Luke growled out.

_Still the same Luke I've always known. _"Thank you." She said as she and Lane moved over to the table. Rory took a bite of the coffee cake and savored it a moment. _I'm totally acing that Latin test today, _She thought. But thinking of school reminded her of that ridiculous party her grandmother was putting on for her. _God, how am I going to make it through __**that**__?_ She momentarily pulled out of her self-pity when the new boy—_God, he has a name. It's Dean_, she reminded herself—came in to get coffee and whispered 'happy birthday' to her. Then she realized the reason he probably got his coffee to go was because he needed to get to school, and she looked out the window in time to see her bus coming down the street.

"Man!" She yelled at herself for losing track of the time. "I've got to go Lane, I'll see you later." She picked up her backpack and looked to the counter. "Thanks for the cake Luke." She told him.

"Wait," He stopped her, and filled a to-go cup.

"Thanks."

"Your welcome, better hurry." He said.

* * *

That afternoon, she got off the bus and began to trudge home. She walked slowly, dragging her feet and not caring that she was wearing out the bottom of her shoes. She didn't want to go to that stupid party. Not that she didn't appreciate the thought, but her grandmother clearly didn't understand high school politics. Rory hadn't made any inroads with the Chilton crowd, and forcing them to come to her party wasn't going to help. Just as she was passing the door of the diner Luke came out carrying a take-out box.

"Rory, glad I caught you." He looked up and down the street quickly. "Um, here." He held out the box.

"What is this?" Rory scrunched her eyebrows.

"Your cake—well, what's left of it." Luke said.

"My cake? From this morning?"

"Yeah. I didn't know if you wanted to save any for later—if you don't want it I'll just throw it away. It's no big deal."

_Throw away an awesome cake?_ "No, I want it—it was really good. Did you keep the balloons too?" She asked.

"They're in the storage room, why?"

_Ah, Luke, you're just a big teddy bear._ Rory stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him in a big hug. "Thanks, Luke" She told him.

"Uh, yeah. You're welcome." He said.

She realized he was holding her very gently, as if he was afraid he'd break her; and it made her feel safe and special to think he was so careful with her. She felt that he was a little thrown off by her sudden display of emotion, and realized she hadn't seen him hug anyone since her mom had forced him into a hug that New Year's night so long ago. Sadness nicked at their happy moment because she was sure that had been the last time someone had been there for him. The moment turned bittersweet as she disentangled herself and took the box from his hands. "Bye, Luke."

"Bye," He said.

When she got home her mother was waiting in the living room. "Hey honey, we've got to get moving if we're not going to be late."

"Alright." Rory set the box on the kitchen table and changed in her room. When she came out she found Lorelai staring at the cake.

"I didn't know Sookie made you a cake. When did you get this?" She asked.

"Actually, I got it from Luke. He made it for me this morning and held onto it until I came home from school." Rory explained in a happy voice.

"Luke made this for you?"

"Yeah."

"What kind of cake is it?"

"Coffee." Rory smiled.

"Coffee." Lorelai repeated, letting it sink in. "I bet it's really good, isn't it?"

"Well, Luke is a really good cook." Rory said. Lorelai just stared at her. "Alright, you can have a little piece."

"Yea," Lorelai threw her hands up.

"But we'll have to wait until we get back from Grandma's."

"Why?" Lorelai pouted.

"Because we've wasted five minutes talking about cake, and we really will be late if we don't leave now."

Lorelai glanced at the clock on the stove. "Crap! Get in the car. Let's go!" They hurried out the door and jumped into the jeep.

* * *

She hadn't meant to lose her temper with her grandma, but the rude kids from her school and the high-class atmosphere made her uncomfortable and short-tempered. She exploded on her grandma because she was the easiest target, and because she really didn't like that she had invited all those kids from school without asking. And when they made it back to Stars Hollow that night, all the progress that had been made over the last week in the relationship between her mom and her grandma had been ruined. The pudding, the less-than-disastrous birthday gift shopping, the hope that things were finally beginning to get better was all gone. They went straight home from Hartford because they were both tired and just wanted to watch a movie. Lorelai started coffee and Rory let her eyes wander over the movie collection.

She heard her mom call out from the kitchen. "I'm having a piece of your cake!"

"Cut me a piece, too." Rory said.

A moment later Lorelai came into the living room with two plates, a cup of coffee balanced on each one. "So what did you pick?"

"I don't know—I kind of want a comedy." Rory said.

"Well, let's see. Since you picked the category, I'll pick the movie. Close your eyes." Lorelai told her.

Rory went to the couch and picked up her plate of cake, careful not to peek at what her mother was picking. "Mmm, this cake is so good."

"Stop teasing me, I haven't even had a bite yet." Lorelai closed the DVD player and sat on the couch with her cake and coffee. She took a small bite and closed her eyes. "Man, this _is_ good. I'm so asking for this when my birthday rolls around."

"Why not just ask Luke to make it when you go to the diner tomorrow?"

"Because he'll probably tell me that it's unhealthy and then I'll have to listen to him rant for ten minutes about the benefits of fruits and vegetables while waiting for my breakfast. If I ask on my birthday then he can't say no."

"Ah."

"Exactly," Lorelai smiled and pushed play on the remote controller.

"What are we watching?" Rory asked as the FBI warning came on the screen.

"It's a surprise." Lorelai said as she took another bite.

* * *

The party at her house was going strong, but she wished her grandparents would have been able to come. She blew out the candles and began cutting up the cake. Sookie had outdone herself again this year. She couldn't even begin to describe the flavor of the cake: swirls of vanilla and chocolate, icing so sweet it caused a headache, a stunning—if not a little creepy—portrait of her face on the cake. It was really something else.

Then her grandparents showed up and she couldn't have been more surprised if they had jumped from behind the couch and yelled 'happy birthday!' at the top of their lungs. In the total confusion of the party she heard her mom yelling something about ice, and then Luke's voice carried into the room. She was glad he showed up. The cake was passed around and everyone was telling stories when she saw her mom and grandma go into the kitchen. They were in there for a few seconds when she heard her mom and her grandmother talking in low voices, and wondered what they could possibly be arguing about. Then Rory heard her grandma mention Luke and knew exactly what was going on. _She hasn't been here ten minutes and she's already picked up on the vibe between Mom and Luke._

But surprisingly, Emily seemed to be content with a few probing questions and comments, and things were civil—even downright cheerful—for the evening. Later, when she needed ice for her soda, she found Luke standing in the kitchen and staring in the direction of the door to her room. "Hey," She smiled.

"Rory, good." Luke said. "Hey, can you just, uh, follow me outside for a minute?"

"Yeah," Rory was a little confused. "What do you need?"

"What? Oh, nothing. It's, well, you'll see." Luke went out the kitchen door and Rory followed him. When he got to his truck he opened the door and pulled out one of the balloons that had been tied to her birthday chair at the diner. "Happy birthday," He said, holding out the balloon.

"Thanks." Rory took the balloon and noticed an envelope and a steel hex-nut hanging off the end of the short string. When she opened the card she found a gift card to Barnes and Noble inside. "Oh, Luke…" she looked up at him.

"Well, I just figured that you have a lot of books that you're required to read; so you should be able to pick a few that you want to read, too.

Rory's eyes traveled to the hex-nut tied to the end of the string. "What's this for?"

"Oh, that's just to keep the balloon from flying away." Luke said. "I know, I probably was supposed to use jewelry or something flashy to do that, but the only thing I would've been able to give you would have come from a Cracker Jack box."

"That's okay." Rory smiled. "I like it—it's original." She said. She gave him a quick hug. "Thanks so much."

"You're welcome."

"I'm glad you came."

"Good." Luke smiled a little. "Let's get back inside before your mom starts wondering where you are."

Back inside, Rory set her present on the desk in her room before rejoining the party. Her grandfather was still reading through the magazine she had given him. She saw Luke talking to her mom and grandma about something, a mild pout on Lorelai's face and one of satisfaction on Emily's. _Get out while you can, Luke._ She urged silently. Then she caught her grandfather and Luke standing in the corner and talking for a few moments before they headed outside. _I wonder what they could possibly be talking about…probably sports or business._

* * *

The party went well, and she was glad her grandparents came and that they seemed to have a good time. Sookie helped her mom in the kitchen and Luke had taken out the trash and cleaned up a little before he went back to his apartment. Rory was taking out one last small bag when she noticed movement in the darkness.

"Hey," Dean came out of the shadows.

"Dean, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I heard there was a party." He smiled.

"That was hours ago—it's over now."

"Yeah, I figured." He laughed a little. "But I wanted to give you something."

"Why didn't you at least show up to the party?"

"Honestly?"

"Yeah."

"I was a little scared of your mom. And that guy who runs the diner."

"Luke?" _Why would you be scared of Luke?_

"Yeah, Luke." Dean shook his head. "He just looks like someone I wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley."

"You don't have to be scared of Luke." Rory laughed at the thought of Luke threatening anyone.

"What if your mom sends him after me?"

Rory thought again. "Okay, you might want to be a little scared of Luke."

"_That's_ why I waited until now to give you this. After you said we needed to keep this low-profile for a few days all I could think of was your mom finding out and then being capped off by Luke as I was heading to school."

"I didn't mean to freak you out."

"No, it's fine. I just wanted to give you this." He held out his hand.

"You didn't have to get me anything…"

Her clandestine meeting with Dean only lasted a few minutes, but she loved it. He was handsome and liked her and she could see that he was trying hard to make her like him. And she did. She liked the idea of someone being head-over-heels for her. She opened the door quietly and took off the bracelet before her mom could see it. She stuck it in her pocket and helped Sookie bring the last of the dishes into the kitchen.

"Hey, baby." Lorelai smiled brightly. "What do you think of this year?"

"Pretty good." Rory answered. "Let me just put a few things in my room." She opened her door and put the bracelet in her desk drawer for the moment.

Lorelai came in and looked at the balloon floating next to Rory's new iBook. "Where'd this come from?" She asked.

"Luke."

"Really? What did he get you?"

"A gift card to the bookstore."

"And a…nut-thingy." Lorelai pointed to the hex-nut and scrunched her eyebrows in confusion.

"Yeah, and that thing."

"Is it some kind of handyman joke?"

"No, he just needed to keep the balloon from floating away."

"Ah, I was beginning to hope it must be a handyman thing." Lorelai smiled. "Cause if we could get _two_ days a year out of him then I could really make some home improvements."

"You take advantage of him as it is, mom."

"I know, but a girl can dream."

Rory laughed and shook her head. "I'm going to start moving things into my room now."

"Okay, I'll help."

* * *

**It's been so long I wonder if anyone's even out there anymore...**


	12. Chapter 12 Emily

**A/N: **Continuing my theme of making up for lost time, here's the next chapter hot off the presses. It's time to expand the story just a little, so here's the first attempt at Emily.

* * *

**"Too many small suggestions,  
ending in forces repressions long ago.  
Too many innocent faces and too many far out places,  
something's wrong."  
'In the Shelter,' Jimmy Buffett**

12. Emily

The house Lorelai lived in was exactly what she expected. It was, of course, the polar opposite of the house Lorelai had grown up in. Just as this little town was the opposite of Hartford. Her friends, her life, it was all as far away from her childhood as she could get. And even though Emily expected it, and planned on it, and could sometimes guess at what her daughter would do, Emily never understood the how and why behind it. It frustrated her, it infuriated her, and it made her heart ache.

Their relationship deteriorated when Lorelai began junior high, and only got worse from there. Lorelai had always been headstrong, but as she got older it degenerated into defiance. And the more Emily tried to curb her daughter's wild ways, the more rebellious she became. Though things were much better now than they had been years ago, she would describe the relationship as icy at best.

So she sat back in the passenger seat of the car while Richard huffed as he navigated the streets of Stars Hollow. _They're all named after fruit. What on Earth would possess someone to name all the streets after fruit?_ She had to admit that the town was pretty—it had a lovely square surrounded by a roundabout and lined with boutique stores and a market. The hardware store looked a bit out of place—there was a diner that seemed to be crowding it out of its place on the corner. But all in all a picturesque New England small town.

They found the house, but had to park at the end of the block because of all the cars. Music and loud voices carried through the door and windows as they stepped up the porch. Emily knocked twice but no one came to the door.

"They probably can't hear us, Emily." Richard said in a cynical voice. "No doubt because of all the devil music and dirty dancing going on."

Emily glanced back at him and smiled slightly. "Then we'll ring the doorbell." She pushed the button.

"Who the hell's ringing the doorbell? It's a party—get your asses in here!"

"Your daughter." Richard said with a wry smile.

"Come on." Emily opened the door and they turned the foyer corner to see a stunned crowd. Lorelai turned around and her eyes went wide with surprise. "Or, asses." She said.

But then Rory was running toward them and the party began again. She was a little surprised that Lorelai had the ingredients for her drink—she had thought there would be no-name beer and cheap liquor if anything. And that woman—Sookie—was an incredible cook. Sookie became frantic when they were out of ice and Emily was trying to find Lorelai to tell her that she would go to get some more. But as she came out of the kitchen she heard her daughter shout with delight and jump into the arms of some unshaven man. "Oh, you're the best!"

Emily watched the scene quietly—she didn't know Lorelai had been seeing anyone. And that man certainly seemed to enjoy the hug.

Lorelai turned around and jolted when she saw Emily. "Oh, hi Mom. This is my friend Luke."

"How are you doing?" Luke asked politely.

_I probably caught them before they could come up with a good cover story._ Emily thought with a smile. "Fine, thank you." She matched Luke's politeness.

Luke excused himself to put up the ice and Emily turned to Lorelai. "He seems nice."

"He is." Lorelai agreed in a neutral tone.

"What?"

"Nothing. You think he's nice. He is nice. He's a really good guy." Lorelai attempted to steer her to the living room, but Emily stayed put.

"Lorelai, why is it I get the feeling you don't want him talking to me?"

"Talk to whoever you want—it's a party."

Then Luke was coming back from the kitchen. Emily turned to him. "It's so nice to finally meet you." She said.

"Really?" He asked, clearly surprised.

"Yes, I've heard so many stories about you from my girls and it's nice to finally meet the man behind them."

"Well, whatever you heard, I promise you it isn't true." Luke said.

"But everything has been so positive—I've heard nothing but good things."

Luke half-smiled and turned to Lorelai, "What do you want?"

"What do you mean?" Lorelai looked back at Luke.

"You're buttering me up for something--it's not going to work." Luke sounded unimpressed by Lorelai's confusion. "Although I'm impressed that you got your mom to help."

"Luke, I swear. I have no idea what you're talking about. In fact, I hardly ever mention you to my mom."

Emily took the opportunity to interject. "Nonsense, Lorelai. Every other story about Stars Hollow involves Luke somehow."

"Not helping, mother." Lorelai told her in an exasperated voice. "Luke, really, I don't want anything--I'm just glad you made it to Rory's party."

Luke studied her a moment and then glanced at Emily. Emily just shrugged her shoulders, hoping Luke understood that she was as clueless as he was. Luke looked back at Lorelai, "Just this once, I'll believe you."

Emily smiled inwardly, intrigued by the whole conversation. "Well, don't worry, I don't think she'll put you to work during the party."

"I wouldn't bet on it." Luke disagreed.

I'll make sure of it then." Emily answered.

"Good to know." Luke shook his head a little.

Emily searched for an opening, "So do you live here in town also?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"And how long have you lived here?"

"Since I was born."

"Luke will probably haunt the town after he dies." Lorelai jumped in, and they both looked at her in confusion. "I'm just saying—you like it here."

"I do." Luke agreed in a tone very similar to the one Lorelai had spoken in when Emily had asked about him.

"You work at a diner if I'm not mistaken, right?" Emily asked.

"I own the diner, actually." Luke corrected.

"And he makes the best coffee." Lorelai said.

Luke seemed to step back a moment. "She's just a caffeine junkie, and I make it a little stronger than all those chain restaurants. Nobody likes to drink weak coffee with their breakfasts."

"Where is your diner? I saw a few stores and restaurants on the drive through town."

"Across from Doose's Market."

"Ah, so you're the one crowding out the hardware shop." Emily smiled, pleased at her earlier observation. "Business must be good."

"Actually, the hardware store isn't in business anymore—it used to belong to my dad, but I turned it into a diner." Luke looked into the middle distance over Emily's shoulder as he explained.

She could see that she was beginning to tread on difficult memories. So she changed the subject. "I'm sorry to hear that, Luke. Have you met my husband Richard yet?"

"No—I haven't said happy birthday to Rory either." Luke said as if he just remembered why he came.

"You better hurry, then." Emily said. "I'll introduce you to Richard in a few minutes—I think you two would get along nice."

"Looking forward to it." Luke said. "It was nice talking to you." He walked away to find the birthday girl.

Lorelai looked to Emily. "So should he bring his own nails or do you prefer to crucify him on your own time?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"The questions, the probing." Lorelai threw her hands up to emphasis her point.

"Lorelai, I was just trying to get to know the man and make a little conversation."

"Oh, please."

"Lorelai, you and Rory both have been mentioning him for years. I'm entitled to ask a few questions."

"You asked him about the hardware store." Lorelai said in an accusing voice.

"And apparently I shouldn't have, so I changed the subject. You never told me his diner and that hardware store were connected."

"His dad owned that hardware store before he died." Lorelai told her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"Well, maybe you should tell him that."

"Lorelai," Emily said in a tired voice. "I came here for my granddaughter's birthday party, not to be accused of crucifixion and callousness. So let's please just drop this and have a good time tonight."

"Fine," Lorelai huffed. "But don't do that thing where you're nice to him for the night and then you send Dad to snoop around for you."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Emily said.

"'Have you met my husband Richard? I think you two would get along nice.'" Lorelai quoted her words in an exaggerated aristocratic tone. "I'm onto you." She pointed her finger at Emily.

"Fine, you caught me." Emily held up her hands. "Before I introduce them I'll tell your father to speak of nothing but sports and cars. Even if Luke is the one to bring up a different subject, I'll tell him to just ignore it."

"Thank you." Lorelai bit out.

"You're welcome." Emily smiled a little. "Let's get back to the living room. We're missing the party."

* * *

Later, she found Richard cornered by—what was her name, Miss Patricia? He was smiling but clearly looking for help. She walked up to him and took his right hand. "There you are, Richard." She kissed him on the cheek. "I see you've been making friends left and right."

"What can I say, everyone here is just so friendly." Richard said, smiling a silent thanks to Emily.

"We try." Miss Patty said.

"Have you met Luke, yet?" Emily asked.

"I…I think. The man in the flannel, right?" Richard asked, and Emily nodded. "Rory introduced us. We said hello, but I was busy with a tour of the house so we couldn't talk."

Emily pointed to Luke, who was leaning against the wall close to the foyer and away from most of the crowd. "Maybe you should go talk to him again. He seems a little lonely."

"Luke?" Miss Patty asked with a smile. "He's not lonely—he's just not a party person. Not like your daughter and granddaughter. It practically took a town meeting to get him to come tonight."

"Is that so?" Richard looked amused.

"Yes, everyone agreed to get here about ten minutes early. After Luke realized he wasn't going to have any customers he had no excuse for not coming."

"Ingenious." Richard said.

"Come on, I'll walk over with you." Miss Patty tugged on Richards sleeve.

"That's okay, I need to say hello to him too." Emily said, and they left Miss Patty and made their way across the room to Luke. On the way over Emily said in a low voice, "See what you can find out about him." Richard just nodded.

When Luke noticed they were coming to see him he stood up straight. "Mr. and Mrs. Gilmore." He said.

"Hello again, Luke." Emily smiled. "This is my husband Richard. I hear that Rory already introduced you, but I think he's a little desperate for some male company."

"I saw you got cornered by Miss Patty. Sorry about that." Luke said.

"A hazard that comes with the territory, I suppose." Richard said.

"You have no idea." Luke told him.

"Well, I have to find the birthday girl, I'll meet up with you later." Emily excused herself.

As she walked away she heard Richard say, "That big Chevy outside is yours, I imagine."

"Yes, it is." Luke answered.

"Chevrolet does make a fine work truck…"

_Good job, Richard._ Emily thought.

* * *

Emily stood in the back of the room for a while and people-watched. Richard and Luke had gone outside after a few minutes, and Rory was the center of entertainment in the living room. She quietly made her way upstairs. Lorelai's door was open and Emily was examining a blanket when Lorelai caught up to her. And she couldn't help herself; she had to take one more stab at trying to find out what was going on between her daughter and Luke. "And this man with the ice." She began.

"Luke." Lorelai corrected.

"How long have you been seeing him?" Emily decided to be direct

Luke? I'm not seeing Luke. He's just a friend." But Lorelai smiled and stumbled over her words.

"Mm-hmm." Emily made herself sound unconvinced.

"Mom, I swear. Luke keeps me in coffee, nothing else."

"He seems to like you."

"And you're judging this by what?" Lorelai sounded skeptical.

"By the way he looked at you." Emily said as if it were obvious.

"Which is how?"

"Like you were about to give him a lap dance."

"Mom, he did not look at me like that." But Lorelai was smiling again.

"You're pleased." Emily pressed.

"What?" Lorelai asked in a surprised voice.

"You're smiling. You're pleased that the ice man looked at you like a Porterhouse steak." Emily said.

"I'm smiling because you're crazy and that's what you do to crazy people to keep them calm." Lorelai deflected.

Emily was about to continue but a picture caught her eye. When she asked about it Lorelai explained that she had broke her leg a few years ago and she didn't even know about it. It made her wonder how many other things she'd missed in her daughter's life. She couldn't take being up here anymore—she couldn't take being in this town anymore, where neighbors had taken the place of family. She went back downstairs to find Richard to see if they could leave.

* * *

She found him sitting on the porch much too involved in some teen magazine. Then Lorelai and Rory found them and he was saying something about chimneys and autumns as he discreetly slid another birthday check to Rory. _God bless him, he does love his baby girls._ Emily thought. She got settled in the car and found the enormity of the evening weighing her down. It was the first time she and Richard had been to Stars Hollow in years—and the first time they had ever been to the house Lorelai owned. The first time they'd met her close friends, and she saw how well her daughter fit into her chosen way of life. And she realized she didn't know Lorelai at all, not like she thought she had. It saddened her.

As they were driving down the street Richard turned to her. "I found out a little about this Luke character."

"Really, what?" Emily sat up a little.

"He seems like a good man…"

She listened to Richard as he recapped his conversation with Luke, and what he had learned from other townspeople that evening. And she was glad that even if Lorelai didn't allow her parents into her life, she at least had someone who could be there for her and Rory.

* * *

**Here's a teaser: Richard is next.**


	13. Chapter 13 Richard

**A/N: **Another new point of view. I think if I get enough characters involved I'll go schizo trying to keep up with the different personalities. Then again, crazy people do tell the best stories...or was that drunk people? Doesn't matter--I've got that angle covered as well.

* * *

**"Too many wild rejections  
Ending in angry questions from her dad.  
Too many T.V. dinners, and everyone loves a winner,  
But she was lost. No one knows the trials she's had."  
'In the Shelter,' Jimmy Buffett**

13. Richard

He loved his daughter and his granddaughter. He loved his wife. And he loved his mother. But it never seemed like love was enough in this world. His mother and his wife despised each other. His wife and his daughter were constantly battling for control—over what, sometimes he's not even sure that they knew. And his beautiful granddaughter was caught in the middle of a brewing storm that won't hold out forever. He wondered what he did to incur such a punishment. Was it because he chose Emily over his college sweetheart? Did he unknowingly make a deal with a demon—in exchange for ending things amicably with Pennelyn Lott was he doomed to never find peace in his own family? The situation bordered on something out of a play from Antiquity. And if that was true, then he must be the tragic hero unable to save those he loved.

At least he saw his girls during the holidays—though things were by no means happy, he cherished the thirty to forty-five minutes in between the time Lorelai and Rory arrived and when the nit-picking began. Sometimes it didn't go any farther than that; other nights ended in cold silence. But he had learned to be happy with what he was given.

He was afraid that Emily's attempt to throw a birthday party would go bad, and was disappointed when it did. But he never expected Rory to become angry. Most surprisingly, Lorelai was the one who threw an olive branch and invited them to Stars Hollow. But Emily was upset and she refused before Richard had a chance to save the moment. It was only after Lorelai and Rory had left that he got the chance to speak to his wife. "You know, dear, we should attend that party."

"Why?" Emily asked bitterly. "I'm tired of having my efforts thrown back in my face."

"Emily," He said in a comforting voice. "I know it's hard. I'm sorry things didn't go as you hoped. But Lorelai was trying to salvage the evening." He wrapped his arms around her in a hug. "And Rory was truly sorry for her outburst. If we don't go then all the progress we've made over these Friday night dinners will be for nothing."

Emily was quiet a moment. "I hate when you do that." She said without looking at him.

"Do what?"

"Convince me to change my mind." Emily sighed.

"I did no such thing. You want to go—I know it." Richard smiled. "Besides, I want to go too. We've yet to see that house she moved into."

* * *

That was how he found himself navigating the streets of Stars Hollow and grumbling about finding a parking space within walking distance. As they came up to the door he walked close to Emily. "I'm glad we came."

"Me too," Emily said as she turned a critical eye on the outside of the house.

"Be nice, dear." Richard chided lightly. "Let's just enjoy the evening."

After the knocking and the door-bell ringing—and after the embarrassing, awkward silence was broken by Rory running towards them—Richard found he was enjoying the evening. Rory gave him a frantic, disjointed tour of the house in between laughing with the party guests. He met her friend Lane, who talked very fast about some music.

"Have you heard Chuck Berry?" He asked.

Lane turned to him and smiled. "Love him. Great guitar player."

They talked a few more minutes before she was swallowed up in the crowd and Rory pulled him into the kitchen, where a man with a backwards baseball cap and a woman with an apron were working. The woman chatted about baking times and proper cooling temperatures and ice. The man just nodded his head and grunted.

"Luke! Sookie!" Rory said happily.

The woman turned quickly and a smile formed on her lips. "Rory!" She crossed the kitchen and hugged her.

"This is my grandpa," Rory introduced the two.

"So nice to meet you." Sookie said and looked back to an ice chest behind her on the floor. "Honey, where's your mom?" She asked Rory.

"Um, in the living room, I think." Rory answered.

"Okay." She turned to Richard. "Can you just, um, excuse me for one moment please…" She trailed off as she left the kitchen.

"I wonder what is going on." Richard mused.

"Just a minor disaster." The man who must be Luke said. "Her ice cream was melting faster than she had anticipated."

"Ah…" Richard said, a little confused.

"Don't ask me, I'm as lost as you are." Luke held up his hands to show his own confusion. "I'd have just served everyone seconds."

"Grandpa, this is Luke." Rory smiled. "Luke, this is my grandpa."

Richard held out his hand. "It's a pleasure."

"Nice to meet you," Luke shook his hand.

"You wouldn't happen to be _the_ Luke, from the diner, would you?" Richard asked.

"That'd be me."

"Well, in that case, it certainly is nice to meet you." Richard said.

Sookie burst into the kitchen with a couple stacks of cereal bowls, closely followed by Lane. "Head's up!" Sookie cried. "Luke, get out the scoop! We're dishing seconds on the ice cream!" She was already to the counter and pulling out the ice cream.

"Back to the grind." Luke muttered. "Happy birthday, Rory." He said.

"We'll let you go before you get into any trouble." Richard said with a smile. Rory led him back to the crowd, but he needed a moment of quiet so he stepped outside.

Rory appeared after a minute with a magazine. "It's not the Wall Street Journal, but it's got a quiz to determine if you're a spring or a fall." She told him, and then let him have his quiet. He was finishing the article and about to start the quiz when he heard Rory's voice come from around the corner of the house. "Did you forget something outside?"

He heard the back door close and Luke came into view, followed by Rory. He went to a green truck—which he had somehow managed to park right next to the house even though he showed up later than Emily and Richard had—and pulled out a small balloon. "Happy birthday," Luke said. The rest was too low for him to hear, but Rory smiled and hugged him before they went back inside so she must have liked whatever he got her.

Curious, he went inside to see if he could find out what Luke had given Rory, but was immediately treed by two women. He smiled and tried to remember their names, but they beat him to it. "Hey there, darling." The shorter one said. "Patty and I have been wanting to talk to you all night."

"Babette, please. You'll scare the poor man off." Patty said with a smile. "How are you?" She turned to Richard.

"Fine, I guess." Richard answered.

"And how are you enjoying the town?" Babette asked.

"Actually, we haven't seen much since it's dark outside."

"Well, let me tell you! You should come back for the weekend, especially during a festival…" Babette and Patty rambled on and on about the town festivals and historical sites and all the shops in town. He asked questions when they talked about the diner Luke owned. Babette was called away by her husband but Patty wouldn't let him go. Finally he was rescued by Emily and sent on a scouting mission to find out more about Luke.

After Emily left them alone he began making conversation. "That big Chevy outside is yours, I imagine."

"Yes, it is." Luke nodded his head.

"Chevrolet does make a fine work truck, I knew a contractor years ago who wouldn't drive anything else."

"Like a rock." Luke quoted the tagline from commercials.

"Indeed." Richard smiled. "So did you come here straight from work?"

"You mean the diner?" Luke asked, and Richard nodded. "Yeah, I had a little more to clean up than I thought, but I made it."

Richard noticed Luke looked a little uncomfortable with the party going on around him, so he asked, "Do you mind if we step outside? I just can't keep up with the party crowd anymore."

"No, not at all." Luke said as he went for the front door.

Richard picked up his drink, which he had set down on the foyer table when Rory started her tour. "Can I get you anything?" He asked. "A beer maybe?"

"No," Luke shook his head and they stepped outside.

"You don't drink?" Richard asked, curious, as he shut the door behind them.

"No—well, I do, just not that often. And not tonight." Luke said.

"Why is that?" Richard leaned against the house and looked out over the front lawn.

"I have an early day tomorrow." Luke said as he braced himself against the rail of the porch.

"Ah, got to feed the town." Richard smiled a little.

"Taylor will throw a tantrum if I open a few minutes late, plus I still have to mop the floor tonight."

"Who is Taylor?" Richard asked.

"Town Selectman," Luke answered with a small chuckle. "He lets the power go to his head."

"Still, I bet you're glad to have tomorrow afternoon off." Richard said.

Luke shook his head at that. "Don't have the afternoon off."

"Working open until close? That's a long day." Richard sympathized.

Luke didn't sound too upset when he said, "It's either that or sit around for half the day."

Richard thought about that. "So do you work all day often?"

"Most every day."

"That's a hell of a work ethic, if you don't mind me saying."

Luke looked at him. "It's not that. I just hate wasting time. Besides, I've got more than enough to keep me busy." He sighed a little and then said. "I'm sure you work long hours too. Lorelai told me you work in insurance, right?"

"That's correct." Richard said.

"Ah," Luke said, and Richard couldn't help but think that Luke didn't have pleasant memories of his insurance representatives. "Lot's of travel?"

"Too much sometimes, if you ask me. There were years when I would be gone twenty days out of every month. It was hard to balance family and work."

"I bet." Luke commented.

"It's much better now. These days I spend most of my time either in the company office or on the golf course with clients." Richard said. "I like being able to spend time with my wife and see my daughter and granddaughter." Richard watched as Luke nodded in agreement. "What about you? How does your family get around you working those long hours?"

Luke shook his head. "I don't really have a family."

"Oh, you're a bachelor?" Richard asked.

"Yeah."

"What about your relatives, if you don't mind me asking."

"My sister and nephew—they live in New York right now. But she's a bit of a…free spirit. They don't visit much."

"What do your parents think of that?"

"My parents died years ago." Luke said. "It's just my sister and my nephew."

"And Lorelai and Rory, I imagine." Richard added.

"Yeah."

Richard took a sip of his drink. "How long have you known my girls?" _I'll bet you remember the day you met, don't you._

"A little over five years," Luke answered casually.

"Well, thank you for watching out for them."

Luke looked up at that and Richard thought he struck a nerve. "What do you mean?"

"I know my daughter," Richard laughed. "She's probably had you doing little things for her since you first met."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that…" Luke trailed off

"The first time I remember hearing your name involved mashed potatoes and minor carpentry work." Richard smiled knowingly, and Luke's eyes betrayed his surprise.

"Really," Luke commented in a low voice.

"Rory said something about—how did she phrase it? 'Those stinking Yankees.'" Richard took a sip and Luke chuckled. "I was discussing one of my clients, who had offered me tickets to a game in New York. Rory had just gotten over the chicken pox, and when I asked where she had heard of the Yankees, she said it was from you. The man who brought mashed potatoes and coffee and did work for Lorelai at the inn. Then she told us all about your diner. She said, and I quote, 'Luke would be very disappointed if we went to a Yankees game.'

"I haven't thought about that in years." Luke said.

"I'm just saying I'm glad someone is here to help. Lorelai isn't always good at asking for it."

"Well, you're welcome." Luke said.

"This is a nice little town." Richard commented.

"It has its moments. Watch out for the festivals, though." Luke told him.

"Does it get a little wild?"

"A little nutty is more like it." Luke scoffed. "Tourism is the main draw—especially the leaves in the fall. The town holds festivals for just about every holiday to keep things going throughout the year. You've just got to be prepared for seeing and hearing things that—any other day—would put you in a padded room at the nearest mental facility. But it helps the town, so I just try to stay out of the way."

"I bet your diner is pretty busy during the festivals."

"Part of the reason I can stay out of the way." Luke said.

Richard studied the window sill a moment.

"Something wrong?" Luke asked.

"No, I was just looking. Although, I don't know about the rest of this house…"

"It's a good house, and I think she got a really good deal on it." Luke said.

"I was looking at the chimney earlier—it seemed shoddy." Richard told him.

"She had it swept a few years ago—I don't think they've used it since then."

"Do you do a lot of repairs for Lorelai?"

"Just little things." Luke said.

The front door opened and Lane stepped outside. "Hey, Luke—Oh, hello Mr. Gilmore."

"Hello." Richard said.

"What do you need, Lane?" Luke asked.

"Sookie and I are moving some stuff—coolers and whatnot. Except we need a man because everything is too heavy for us to do the actual moving part. Could you help?"

"Uh, I should probably go…" Luke motioned to the door.

"Oh, go ahead." Richard said. "I've got to finish this article Rory gave me to read."

Luke followed Lane inside and Richard sat back down on the bench. _Interesting man, _he thought.

* * *

He passed on what he had learned about Luke to Emily while they drove home, and she sat quietly staring out the window. Finally she spoke. "He seems to like her."

"I think you're right."

"Rory really likes him." She continued in a low voice.

"He seems to care about her too."

"He's done a lot for them, hasn't he?"

"It appears that way." Richard agreed.

Emily didn't say anything for a moment, then she asked, "Did you know she broke her leg a few years ago?"

* * *

**Thank you for not abandoning my story.**


End file.
